The second steering committee meeting for the Horizontal Facility Actions on education was held in Pristina on 15 November. The meeting brought together representatives of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, representatives from the EU office in Kosovo, the University of Pristina, Kosovo Anti-Corruption Agency, Kosovo Pedagogical Institute, and from two civil society organisations. The meeting was chaired by the Head of the Council of Europe Office in Pristina, Isabelle Servoz-Gallucci, who thanked the main stakeholders for their commitment and cooperation in the implementation of activities.

Following the opening remarks, the current status of implementation of activities and the forthcoming plans for two actions “Strengthen Integrity and Combat Corruption in Higher Education”, and “Fostering a Democratic School Culture and Diversity in Schools” were presented.

Members praised the project results. The director of the Higher Education Department within the Ministry of Education emphasised that the project “Strengthen Integrity and Combat Corruption in Higher Education” has really made a difference in Kosovo* and has contributed to a raised awareness of all actors in education, because previously the issue of Integrity in Education was not a subject of discussion in society.

The representative from the Ministry of Education working on pre-university education said that the project on Democratic school culture and diversity in school is fully in line with the priorities of the Kosovo Education Strategic plan 2017 – 2021. Moreover, she added that she was satisfied that the selection of pilot schools was done in close cooperation with the Ministry and that the cooperation with them is very satisfactory.  

The meeting was concluded with promise for mutual cooperation and support from both sides.   

*This designation is without prejudice to position on status and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence