USAID Kosovo

A Masters of Science Program in Service Management and Infrastructure Development was launched on January 8 by the American University in Kosovo (AUK).

The seventeen-month, intensive program will increase the number of skilled interdisciplinary professionals capable of holding senior management positions in both the private and public sectors. Students will complete a set of core courses in project management, asset management, project finance, research and problem solving, and human capital development. In addition, students have the option of choosing between two concentrations: service management or energy and natural resource development, both relevant areas for economic and infrastructure development.

AUK is confident that the program will benefit not only the energy and natural resources sectors, but will also provide a pool of talent that can contribute to the growth of other key sectors, including financial services, telecommunications, and tourism. The degree is awarded by the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), and is part of a USAID- supported partnership aimed at improving the workforce in the energy and natural resource sectors. The program and the degree are fully accredited in the United States.

Business development has no ethnic boundaries

A freezing and cold storage facility was officially opened by Tina Kaidanow, US Office in Pristina Chief of Mission, and Stanko Jokovljevic, Mayor of Shtrpce/Strpce, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 19th.

"This project is special because it represents a mutually beneficial commercial arrangement between a Serb firm and an Albanian-majority cooperative" said Kaidanow. "Together, these two organizations have an extensive network, buying from hundreds of local collectors covering all the villages in Shterpce/Strpce municipality."

The construction was a joint venture of Scardus Company and Qingjat e Sharrit Cooperative, the first a Serb owned company and the latter an Albanian-majority owned. The companies invested about €60,000 in constructing this facility, and USAID's Kosovo Cluster and Business Support added an additional €25,000 to the initiative.

This joint venture initiative is unique as it will benefit hundreds of collectors in the surrounding mountain villages. By constructing storage and cooling facilities for a wide array of products to be stored, the duration of the collection season will be expanded so that it will start in late March and end with the first snowfalls of November, thereby providing longer-term employment and incomes for the collectors. The facility employs 4 full time staffers.

An added benefit of this new facility is stimulating the creation of new value chains for Kosovo products through the planting of other berries which have known market potential, especially cane berries such as raspberries, blackberries, and red and black currents. As with blueberries, these other berries also suffer from high rates of post-harvest respiration and require freezing soon after harvest. By planting cane berries near the existing freezing facilities, farmers will be assured that their post-harvest handling problems are solved. These berries have the positive features of being labor intensive with high returns per unit of land area cultivated; they are about four times as profitable as growing corn.

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