Let’s Talk about youth – Interactive Kosovo Youth Map launch

It’s a well versed fact that Kosovo has the youngest population in Europe. “With over half the population under the age of 25, and 70% under 35…” — read any foreign correspondent media report on Kosovo and we get the same old numbers rolled out time and time again.

But numbers in themselves are only part of the picture — behind each number, each single figure that makes up a statistic, is a story. 

That’s why K2.0 is launching our interactive youth map. 

We’ve compiled together a new trove of data relating to young people in Kosovo, all in one easily navigable new section of our website for journalists, researchers and young people themselves to help determine their own stories. 

How many graduates are Kosovo’s universities producing, and in what fields? Which sectors of the labor market are crying out for qualified workers? Which areas are losing their young people to migration, and which are managing to hold onto their youth? Who has the best chance of finding that ever-elusive employment?

This is just the start of the journey. 

In the coming weeks and months, we’ll be building upon this rich source of information to dig beneath what this data means in real terms, for the lives of real people. Whether it’s workers’ rights, gender gaps, unemployment effects, or opportunities for people with disabilities, we’ll be bringing these numbers to life through our award-winning journalism.

As we focus our attention on the lives of young people, let’s talk about the issues that affect your lives. Is Kosovo producing too many graduates? Are the skills being taught in schools and universities meeting the requirements of the labor market? What can be done to arrest Kosovo’s brain drain? What other factors are affecting the life chances of the next generation? And what can be done to turn the story around…? 

To get the open discussion started, we’ve invited along:

1. Drita Kadriu – Head of Higher Education Department at the Ministry of Education
2. Muhamet Klinaku – Head of Labour Market Department at Employment Agency
3. Valbona Rraci – Zyrtare e lartë në EYE për fuqizimin e shërbimeve të karrierës për të rinj
4. Dorina Lluka Davies – National CEO at YMCA in Kosovo
5. Roni Idrizaj – Executive Director at S’bunker

Join us on Thursday, October 3, from 17:30 at Hub 2.0.

*Translation will be provided.

Kosovo Youth Map is supported by the SDC EYE Project, implemented by Helvetas and MDA.