Closing the loop: an EU-funded project introduces a textile recycling concept in Kosovo
In Kosovo it is very rare to come across bins for separated waste, and recycling is mainly carried out by individual rubbish-pickers who collect metal, cardboard and plastic waste from regular garbage bins, and sell it on. However, thanks to an NGO called Let’s Do It Peja, the collection of textile waste has taken off in Peja, a town in western Kosovo. Arba Shehu is a young and passionate environmental activist who along with her colleagues at the NGO have identified this problem early on, and decided to contribute to a solution. They launched the “Promoting circular economy as a sustainable model for social enterprise development – SEREC” project, which is funded by the EU. Now Arba is the manager of the project.
Arba explains that the idea for it came because of the volume of textile waste generated and because public institutions have failed to develop a sustainable waste collection and management system in Peja or elsewhere in Kosovo. According to her, most local waste ends up in legal and illegal landfills, the vast majority of which do not comply with basic environmental and health standards. “Although the legal framework is partially streamlined with that of the EU, waste remains one of the most significant problems in Kosovo,” says Arba.
“Although the legal framework is partially streamlined with that of the EU, waste remains one of the most significant problems in Kosovo.”
Producing fashion from waste
The project started in January this year, with the NGO placing a textile collection point in the centre of the city. To the delight of the project team, local residents are responding to the call for sharing their textile waste through such collection points.
The project is based on the so-called “3R” (“Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”) concept. However, apart from its environmental contribution, the project also has an economic angle as they have opened a second-hand shop to sell the donated textiles that are in good condition.
Arba believes that there can be no long-term impact if younger generations are not involved actively. Therefore, the education component of the project is seen as the most important one by her and her colleagues. In cooperation with the art high school in Peja, Let’s Do It Peja have launched an extracurricular design course where young students, mentored by experienced fashion designers hired by the project, work on designing and making new clothing using the collected textile waste. Arba explains that this is the most exciting part of the project for her: “The students are very passionate, and we have seen them come up with very interesting and attractive models.”
“I am very grateful to be part of the EU-funded SEREC project. I am learning many new things and expanding my professional horizons with new knowledge about the fashion industry.”
About the project
The EU-funded “Promoting circular economy as a sustainable model for social enterprise development – SEREC” project was launched in January and will end in December 2021. The overall goal of the project is to support the development of social enterprises in Kosovo and enhance the employment of disadvantaged groups, primarily women and youth, through the application of circular economy concepts.
Yllka Latifi is one of the students participating in the extracurricular course launched by the project. She says, “I am very grateful to be part of the EU-funded SEREC project. I am learning many new things and expanding my professional horizons with new knowledge about the fashion industry.”
The SEREC project aims to be self-sustaining and continue with the activities even after the EU funding ends. The Let’s Do It Peja NGO is currently working on registering and launching a social enterprise with the 3R concept and name. In this way they aim to ensure sustainability by turning this project into an enterprise with long-term economic and environmental benefit for the community.
The new social enterprise will aim to hire staff who will work on designing and sewing the recycled textiles as well as people to work in the second-hand shop. “In this way we aim to help people in need, as the new employees of the social enterprise will primarily come from vulnerable groups such as women, young people and minorities,” says Arba.
On 15 September, seven newdecisions entered into force, meaning that COVID-19 certificates issued by Albania, Andorra, the Faroe Islands, Israel, Monaco, Morocco and Panama are equivalent tothe EU’s digital COVID certificate. As a result, the seven countries and territories will be connected to the EU’s system, and the COVID certificates they issue will be accepted in the EU under the same conditions as EU digital COVID certificates. At the same time, the countries and territories agreed to accept theEU digital COVID certificatefor travel from the EU to their countries.
Commissioner for Justice, DidierReynders, said:“During this summer we have seen that citizens are able to travel safely thanks to the EU digital COVID certificate. This is a win-win situation: citizens can enjoy their right to free movement, and businesses – as well as the transport sector – can start making up for the losses of past months. Since June, more than 420 million EU certificates have been issued. I therefore welcome more and more countries outside the EU joining our successful system. A total number of 42 countries – 27 EU Member States and 15 non-EU countries – are now taking part in the EU’s digital COVID certificate system, confirming the EU certificate as an international standard.”
Twenty-four institutes for public health across Serbia have received specialised vehicles for the transport of vaccines and medical teams, thanks to the support of the European Union. The President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, and the Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Serbia, Ambassador Emanuele Giaufret, attended the handover of vehicles equipped with portable refrigerators and additional equipment that enables the distribution of vaccines while providing a cold chain. With these, vaccines can be made available in remote health stations and reach more people.
The EU is also continuing financial support for the employment of 200 health workers engaged in 23 health institutions in Serbia for a new period of three months, providing the additional human resources needed in the fight against COVID-19. This support, worth close to €1.2 million, is part of a larger package of EU aid totalling over €10 million in medical and non-medical equipment delivered during this and previous years in partnership with the UNOPS office in Serbia.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the European Union has supported Serbia in the fight against the spread of the virus with more than €77 million, of which €20.7 million was spent on urgent support and the most pressing needs to strengthen the health system in Serbia both in crisis and during regular functioning.
With European Investment Bank financing, Sarajevo’s tram network gets new vehicles for the first time in 40 years.
While Sarajevo was under Austro-Hungarian administration, the city was used as a testing area for new inventions before they were installed in Vienna. The Sarajevo tramway was launched as a test line on New Year’s Day 1885,making the Sarajevo tram network one of the oldest in Europe.
The tram network continued in operation for over a century, including during difficult times such as the First and Second World Wars. During the Siege of Sarajevo of 1992-1995, trackwork and numerous vehicles were badly damaged but although the tram operation stopped for part of the siege, service resumed in April 1994. Since then, the tram network has been facing difficulties, with most of the vehicles approximately 40 years old.
“Many of the tram vehicles that I drive are the same ones that I used to travel with when I was a child, 40 years ago!”
Reducing congestion, increasing safety
Hidajet Šarić is 46 years old. He has been working as a tram driver for the Sarajevo tram network for over 20 years. He remembers when he was a schoolboy travelling to and from school by tram. “Many of the trams that I drive are the same ones that I used to travel on when I was a child,” he says. Hidajet explains that the last time that new vehicles were bought was just before the Winter Olympic Games that were held in Sarajevo in 1984.
Over the years, the city purchased some second-hand trams and worked on maintenance and upgrading, but the existing fleet is far from the quality of the trams used in other cities in Europe and beyond. Hidajet explains that he and his colleagues every now and then have technical issues when the trams break down and need to be towed for maintenance. This is a dangerous procedure as they have to be driven backwards, including round difficult turns without good visibility which poses a serious risk of accident. He adds that the passenger experience is not always good enough, as the trams do not have air conditioning.
However, these problems are about to end with the support of the European Investment Bank (EIB) – the lending arm of the European Union – which has offered €40 million for the modernisation of Sarajevo’s public transport. These improvements will significantly increase safety and reduce traffic congestion and air pollution in the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the surrounding municipalities.
“The new system and vehicles equipped with the latest technology will help us increase the number of passengers using public transport, and decrease traffic congestion in the city while creating a cleaner and greener Sarajevo.”
About the project
The EIB has provided €40 million for the urban transport network in the Canton of Sarajevo. The financing, provided on the most favourable terms, will enable modernisation and extension of the tram and trolley bus networks by replacing existing vehicles and building new tramlines. The establishment of a more efficient and reliable public transit system is expected to enable a shift of passengers from private to public transport.
As a result, it will help to reduce commute times, greenhouse gas emissions, noise levels and the number of traffic accidents in the Canton of Sarajevo. The project will contribute to the fulfilment of the EU Strategy for the Western Balkans and the EIB’s climate action goals for the region relating to sustainable transport.
Sarajevo, like other cities in the Western Balkans, has some serious problems with air pollution. This is in part a result of increased use of vehicles for commuting, in particular during the winter season. Adnan Steta, Sarajevo Canton’s Minister of Transport, explains that the idea for the project to modernise the city’s public transport mainly came out of the need to reduce air pollution in the city. He welcomes this investment and support from the European Investment Bank. “The new system and vehicles equipped with the latest technology will help us increase the number of passengers using public transport, and decrease traffic congestion in the city while creating a cleaner and greener Sarajevo,” he says.
On 18 September, the Young European Ambassadors (YEA) from the Western Balkans participated together with other volunteers, the European Union (EU), the United Nations (UN) in Albania, and the Civil Society Organisation EDEN in the EU Beach Clean-Up event in Durres, Albania. The activity was organised as part of the World Clean-up Day campaign.
As part of the action, YEA, along with other participants, collected over 70 bags of waste and contributed to the clean up of the beaches in Durres. At the opening event, the Head of Political, Economic, and Information Section at the EU Delegation in Tirana, Mr Alexis Hupin, thanked all participants who contributed and supported the Coastal Clean-up Initiative, while highlighting the urgency and significance of keeping our oceans plastic-free.
#EUBeachCleanup is an ocean awareness and activism campaign organised yearly by the EU in September, featuring events across the world. As part of the campaign, through its global network of EU delegations (“embassies”) and representations in EU member states, the EU reaches out to citizens worldwide, creating awareness about the issue and encouraging people to take care of seas and oceans. The campaign is part of a global UN initiative: Act Now.
The YEA network launched in August 2020 together with 60 change-makers coming from: Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. The network promotes diversity while sharing a common vision: learning about one another and the European Union, pursuing creative projects, acquiring new skills, organising inspiring events – always guided by the idea that youth activism is the most powerful tool for social change.
The European Parliament has given its green light to the next generation of the pre-accession funding instrument that will help seven countries better prepare to meet the obligations of future EU membership. This is the final step of the adoption process for this instrument, through which the EU will provide support to key political, institutional, social and economic reforms.
Worth €14.2 billion, the 2021-2027 Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA III) will support the implementation of these EU-related reforms in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey.
Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, commented: “Together, we have shaped an instrument that has great potential and sends a strong signal that the European Union is committed to support the enlargement region. IPA III is definitely an investment in the future.”
IPA III has a strategic and performance-based design with no country-specific allocation from the outset, and will focus on the rule of law and the respect of fundamental values, strengthening democratic institutions and public administration reform, promoting economic governance and reforms for competitiveness. It will also tackle sustainable economic recovery, energy supply, transport, environment and climate change, and digital transformation.
A modern and digitalised rail network was recognised as a key priority of the Dedication to Rail signed by ministers in charge of transport in the region at the Western Balkans Rail Summit, held in Belgrade on 13 September. The event was organised by the Transport Community Permanent Secretariat, the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), under the auspices of Serbia’s Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure.
The summit gathered ministers in charge of transport from the Western Balkans and neighbouring countries with representatives of the European Commission and rail professionals for discussions on how to advance regional and European transport policy and contribute to building a digitalised and sustainable rail transport system in the region. Commitments were made on a number of priorities including re-establishing direct intercity train links connecting the region and the EU; enhancing digitalisation of railway systems to connect and exchange data for cross-border passenger and freight transport; increasing safety of level crossings; and opening rail markets.
The summit was organised to coincide with the arrival of the Connecting Europe Express train as part of the European Year of Rail. This is part of the European Green Deal plan to make the EU economy sustainable by achieving climate neutrality by 2050.
The Connecting Europe Express, a special train put together as part of the European Year of Rail 2021, pulled out of Lisbon train station on 2 September. It stopped in Belgrade on 13 September and in Skopje on 14 September. The train is scheduled to visit more than 100 towns and cities during its five-week journey, before arriving in Paris on 7 October. By setting off from Lisbon and ending in Paris, with a notable stop in Ljubljana, the train connects the Portuguese, Slovenian and French Presidencies of the Council of the EU.
Along the route, events are planned to welcome the train at railway stations across Europe. Rail enthusiasts can also follow debates happening on board as well as conferences on EU infrastructure policy and the role of the Trans-European Transport Network that will be livestreamed from Lisbon, Bucharest, Berlin and Bettembourg via an event website.
The Connecting Europe Express is the result of unique cooperation between the European Commission, the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies, European rail operators, infrastructure managers and numerous other partners at EU and local level.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) – the EU’s lending arm – has signed a €1.2 million cooperation agreement with Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Republika Srpska, to support water and sanitation services. With expert technical assistance services, the project aims to upgrade the quality of water and wastewater services, provide services to unconnected households, and improve living conditions for over 216,000 people.
The investments are part of the EU-funded projects approved under the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF) in 2019 for water and sanitation (WATSAN) programmes in both entities of BiH: the Federation (FBiH) and Republika Srpska (RS). The total investment value for both WATSAN projects is more than €215 million, with the EU and bilateral donors providing €14.4 million in grants through the WBIF, complementing €110 million in EIB loans.
The WATSAN programmes were launched in 2008 with the purpose of assisting 50 small and medium-sized municipalities in the FBiH and RS in developing sustainable water and sanitation services, in accordance with EU accession conditions.
The best three stories from Albania in 2020 have been recognised with EU awards for investigative journalism. On Tuesday, journalists Luljeta Progni, Geri Emiri, Anila Hoxha and Esmeralda Keta were selected as this year’s winners for their stories which variously covered the abuse of workers’ rights in Albania, corruption in construction, and wrongdoings behind the curtain of the pandemic.
The jury was headed by journalist and BBC producer Albana Kasapi. The other two members were Idro Seferi, a Deutsche Welle and Swiss TV correspondent, and Elira Canga, a journalist working in media development.
Opening the awards ceremony, the director of the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) Hub, Marija Ristić, stressed the importance of awards like this in recognising journalists who work hard to deliver pieces of real public importance. In presenting the awards, the head of the Political Section of the European Union Delegation in Albania, Alexis Hupin, spoke about investigative journalism as a mechanism for challenging authority and making government more transparent and accountable.
