Historical Background, Reforms of the Public Administration, and the European Integration of Kosovo

The paper analyses the current situation of the public administration in Kosovo and its integration into the European Union. The aim of this paper is to analyse the condition of Kosovo’s public administration and its attempts to reform in order to reach the standards set out by the EU for becoming a member state. The paper presents challenges faced by the public administration, which arise from the European integration process, i.e. the requirements related to the public administration from the Copenhagen criteria and the Stabilisation and Association Agreement. The paper offers recommendations for improving the public administration, describes the focus of the reforms and the results achieved on Kosovo’s path to meeting EU standards, as well as what should be done for full membership to be achieved. Special attention is paid to progress, with a comparative approach vis-à-vis the neighbouring countries in the Western Balkans used as an analytical tool.