Sozialpolitik im Kosovo: Liberalisierung eines Politikfeldes
Social Policy in Kosovo: Liberalization of a Policy Field

Summary/Abstract: In terms of social policies, as in many other ways, Kosovo constitutes a specific case when compared to other European countries (in transition). Social policy in Kosovo is coined by distinctive lines of development: the legacies of the Yugoslav welfare state, the parallel underground welfare system in Kosovo during the 1990s, the massive interventions by transnational (social policy) actors in the aftermath of the Kosovo conflict of 1999, as well as the recent developments in the context of an independent state Kosovo. This unique variety of institutional and political interferences meets a highly particular setting of social risks in Kosovo: Despite the overall trend of ageing societies in Europe, Kosovo's population is still growing while the share of old persons is very small. The situation concerning employment, poverty, social exclusion and the population's health status is alerting, particularly when compared with the situation in the European Union but as well by regional standards. The paper provides a basic analysis of social protection in Kosovo in the light of social, demographic, economic and political trends. It assesses the basic structure of social policy fields in Kosovo: labour markets, pensions, social assistance, long-term care, health care and education. Moreover, it applies approved concepts and theoretical discourses in order to contribute to systematic and comparative research. The paper’s central hypothesis is that Kosovo’s nascent welfare regime has a clear liberal character which can be identified throughout all policy fields. The research is conceptualised as a theory driven by an explorative country study, sustained by the review of corresponding literature.

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