“Without a free press democracy cannot survive. Without freedom of expression, there is no freedom. On Democracy Day and every day, let us join forces to secure freedom and protect the rights of all people, everywhere.” António Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations This is how we started the conversation with Aleksandra Nicic, a long-time journalist of Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK), Channel 2, in Serbian language. Aleksandra comes from a village called Lepina, near Pristina, and tells us that she is never late for work or meetings because she simply loves her job. This is her 12th year working as journalist. “Journalists today are not the journalists I knew in the beginning of my career. There are journalists in Kosovo for whom the media houses and outlets cannot even provide transportation for their stories in the field. We at RTK are lucky in that regard. We are well equipped, and we are all over Kosovo, covering every region, town, and village.” Aleksandra explains.  She says that the combination of the global crisis - both economic and political - with the consequences of the COVID pandemic brought many problems to the quality of journalism. It was hard for journalists to check all the facts during the pandemic due to restrictions. Now, it is getting easier.   “Unavailability of information, transmission of conferences without translation, and difficulties in finding interlocutors on certain topics can make this work difficult”, Aleksandra describes the challenges she is facing during the pandemic. For Aleksandra, journalists are constantly fighting to improve people’s lives. No journalist in the world should forget the role of the media: “I think, irrespective of gender, race, or religion, we all have an obligation to work professionally and to remain unbiased”.  Aleksandra’s home was hit hard by flooding in the past three years, during the heavy rains in autumn and spring, so personally she feels passionate about environmental issues.  “Urbanization and proper planning present huge challenges in Kosovo. My home was flooded because of unplanned construction in the village. After facing serious damage and entirely flooded home, I was helped financially by the journalist colleagues, not only from Kosovo, but from across the region. That brought hope to me and hope for the humanity. Today, I am obsessed with this topic, and I am raising environmental awareness whenever I can”, said Aleksandra.  “I understand that the global situation is worsening, and big changes are going to happen in the economy, and I do understand that we need “four eyes open” on people living in poverty. At the same time, I am sending an appeal to the World leaders to use media in saving the globe and to fight against the distribution of misinformation. Media can play a key role in shaping the new world, with less use of fossil fuels and a healthier environment, with peaceful and more resilient communities”, concludes Aleksandra. UNDP, in partnership with OSCE, UNMIK, and the Government of Japan – supported the creation of independent media in Kosovo during 2000-2002 through establishment of RTK, the public broadcaster, in seven languages: Albanian, Serbian, Turkish, Bosnian, Roma and lately in Montenegrin and Ashkali languages. Soon it will also be broadcasting in Gorani language.
The RTK assists in expressing the political, ethnic, language, cultural and religious diversity pluralism and promotes the local production and social integration.   UNESCO has reported that 85 per cent of the world’s population experienced a decline in press freedom in their country in the past five years.
Women journalists are particularly impacted. UNESCO and the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) found that 73 percent of 714 women-identifying journalists from 125 countries have reported experiencing online violence in the course of their work.

Jointly with the Municipality of Pristina, Manifesta, the Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning and infrastructure, and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, UN-Habitat inaugurated the 1.3 km long Pristina "Green Corridor" during the opening of the European Nomadic Biennial Manifesta 14. UN-Habitat, Manifesta 14, and Carlo Ratti Associati have been working with the Municipality of Pristina to support the social change at the heart of the initiative, particularly for the first time here, through urban intervention projects in public spaces. This project aspires not only to recover a portion of the unused railway tracks and turn it into a green and accessible physical infrastructure but, above all, to make it a public space of community integration in the capital, allowing citizens to reclaim their public spaces. This project was also supported by the Ministry of Environment, Spatial Planning, and Infrastructure, and the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sports. The Green Corridor connects four Pristina neighbourhoods and aims to rehabilitate the unused railway line. The initiative transforms the 5200 m2 area into a open public space that will include pedestrian lanes, recreational areas, and green spots linking the Old Brick Factory and the primary school “Qamil Batalli,” known as the Model School, with the Palace of Youth and Sports. The implementation of this project has also benefitted from the contributions of the Minecraft workshops, implemented through the Block-by-Block initiative, a partnership between Minecraft developer Mojang, Microsoft, and UN-Habitat. Mayor Perparim Rama distributed appreciation certificates to the children participating in the design process during the Minecraft workshops for their engagement and work. This project is implemented by UN-Habitat with financial support from the Government of Sweden, Municipality of Pristina, and Block-by-Block Foundation.

Established in the early 1990’s, the event has evolved into a traveling platform focusing on the dialogue between art and society, investigating and instigating positive social change. It has consistently chosen host locations that reflect Europe’s ever-changing DNA, and Pristina, having rapidly grown from a small town into a buzzing city home to about 200,000 people and thousands of daily commuters, is a city of great potential and bright future. With more than half of Kosovo’s population 25 years old or under, Pristina is emerging as a hub of creativity and innovation, manifested by a vibrant creative scene. The Kosovo New Wave has emerged in the film industry with a generation of filmmakers awarded at international festivals such as Sundance, Bafta, Toronto, Cannes, and shortlisted for Oscars. There are inventive visual arts, unique fashion design featured in Vogue, and trailblazing art and film festivals - one hosted every summer by Dua Lipa, in her annual homecoming to Kosovo. On the other hand, with construction sites mushrooming across the city and its outskirts, and the number of cars multiplying, the city is a theater for complex urban challenges being felt through traffic jams, polluted air, shrinking green spaces, and high youth unemployment.  It is no coincidence, therefore, that UNDP Kosovo joined forces with Manifesta. We were thrilled to partner in transforming the former Hivzi Sulejmani Library - an abandoned public library and a protected cultural heritage site - into the Center for Narrative Practice. This quiet hidden gem, forgotten behind the busy streets, has been turned into an urban oasis and creative hub where people from all walks of life can learn together, tell stories and create their own narratives.  The Center will serve as an interdisciplinary space and enable both community and visitors to conduct research and to use tools and materials available to tell stories. “In a way the Center encapsulates what our whole team would like to see Manifesta 14 contribute to the cultural landscape: It returns a lost building to the residents in a manner that responds to the desires they have expressed. It’s a place to read and to listen to stories, to learn new ways of telling stories, and to reflect on how we use storytelling to engage with one another, to take part in public and political life and to bring forth new imaginaries and ways of being. Whether you’re five or seventy-five, you can do all kinds of things there from self-publishing to podcasting, from reading and research to conservation, archiving and urban gardening”, says Catherine Nichols, Creative Mediator of Manifesta 14. As one of the main physical legacies of Manifesta 14 Prishtina, the Center represents a model that could be replicated throughout Kosovo, providing a space for creative industries, where communities can connect and explore solutions to urban challenges, creating narratives that can lead to a more sustainable future.  Beyond that – we recognize the important role that Manifesta can play in accelerating inclusive urban transformation. During its 100 days of engaging people and bringing communities together, Manifesta provides a unique opportunity for Pristina to demonstrate its potential and willingness to reclaim public space and re-imagine the future its residents aspire to achieve.  Through 25 fascinating sites, mediated tours, education programmes, and other activities, the fate of Pristina’s important but forgotten landmarks – such as Kino Rinia, the Brick Factory, and the Grand Hotel – is quested. These prominent buildings, used as culture, leisure and exchange spaces, can help better understand the city’s past and reflect on its possible futures. By utilizing tools of inclusive innovation and storytelling, Manifesta’s urban research also aims to meaningfully connect different parts of the city together in a sustainable, green, and safe manner. Through simple and symbolic interventions and venues, the event demonstrates how small actions can contribute to meaningful change and multiple benefits. UNDP sees arts and creative industries as a potential for Kosovo to build bridges across social boundaries and divisions, to inspire new changemakers and to cut through disciplines for urban transformation. Art allows for new narratives and perspectives, bringing people together across communities to experience its transformational power and elevating well-being. At the same time, creative industries make up an increasing share of the global economy, creating millions of jobs in cinematography, industrial design, cultural tourism, sustainable production, and other areas.  As part of our commitment to supporting Kosovo’s creatives in the creation of new decent jobs and promoting social cohesion, UNDP partnered with the Municipality of Pristina, the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Royal Embassy of the Netherlands to Kosovo and Manifesta in creating the Center for Narrative Practice. The fact that we were able to jointly set up the Center in such a short period of time – in just a few months – demonstrates the power of partnerships when working towards a common dream.  Blog by Maria Suokko, UN Development Coordinator a.i. and UNDP Resident Representative   Our thanks to Manifesta 14 Prishtina and the PR Office of the Mayor of Pristina for sharing with us some of the photos used in this blog.   For more on Manifesta please see https://manifesta.org/    

Zubin Potok, 1 June – The early years of childhood are a time of great opportunity. This is the time when children’s brains develop the quickest, as they interact with their environment and others. Here is where the role of the parents, both of them, comes in. Children’s brains, and abilities, can best develop with parental support and guidance. Unfortunately, data shows us that the involvement of both parents in hands-on parenting in Kosovo is still low. According to the latest MICS data, overall 63 percent of children 2-4 years old engage with adult household members in activities that provide early stimulation, while mothers are four times more likely than fathers to engage with their children aged 2–4 years in activities that promote learning.  Srđan Đukic, a father of two young girls from Zubin Potok municipality, has challenged this trend. He is a role model who shows how important fathers’ engagement is in the lives of their children. Alongside his wife and two daughters Nina, 2 and Elena, 4, he took part in the June 1 celebration for International Children’s Day, organized by UNICEF in collaboration with the Zubin Potok municipality. “It is important because we provide guidance to our children on how to choose the right path in life, and also create for them a safe and healthy space for their development from the very beginning,” Srđan said. Srđan is a primary school music teacher and believes that art and play are essential to children’s early development. He makes sure that he reads, eats, and plays games with his daughters every day. “I work from early in the morning which means that during the day my wife is more engaged with Nina whereas Elena goes with me to school. Even so, I try to spend 2.5 hours a day with my daughters playing educational games, playing with toys etc.,” he says.   Maja, his wife, says that it is important for both parents to be active and involved in parenting.   “Even though he is engaged and very busy at work he always finds a way to spend time with our daughters every day, and that is something that I see as an important act from his side because children need both parents in the learning process,” Maja said. Maja is a stay-at-home mother, and it is very important for her to have some time for herself, since she is very engaged all day with house duties. “I do not work (outside the home), so this is why I am more engaged with Nina from the morning until the end of the day, but the presence and involvement of my husband after work helps me to also have time for myself,” she said. In a statement released on June 1, UNICEF emphasized that, like in many places around the world, children in Kosovo are still coping with the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has reversed decades of progress on access to health, education and nutrition services as well as threatened the mental well-being of children and parents.   The event of the 1st of June, which also marks the beginning of the Parenting Month, brought together 500 children and parents from pre-schools and primary schools from Zubin Potok municipality and to promote the importance of positive parenting and community support for early childhood development Parental support during all times, especially during difficult times, is crucial, alongside investments and equitable government policies.  Investments that support early childhood development lay the foundation of transformational improvement in outcomes for young children and their families. Digital innovation to support parents, such as Foleja parenting application, provide targeted support for parents and encompass all developmental domains of children, thus enhancing the understanding of the critical importance of a supportive, healthy, and stimulating environment.   Written by Leonora Aliu, UNICEF