EDUCATION

USAID has been engaged in Kosovo’s education system throughout its 14 years of assistance.  Initial assistance focused on increasing access to education by providing infrastructure improvements (construction and renovation) in schools throughout Kosovo.  This was followed by concentrated reform efforts at the primary (grades 1- 5) and lower secondary (grades 6-9) levels.  In alignment with the Government’s decentralization policies, support focused on building the capacities of the Municipal Education Departments to manage the education system at the local level.  Areas of concentration include improving early grade reading and providing quality courses in math, science and technology.  Critical need areas remain, including addressing the lower-to-secondary dropout rate and further enhancing school management and teaching skills.

At the tertiary level, current university curricula – specifically at the University of Prishtina which is the major body of higher education in the country – has not been modernized and is of poor quality, leaving many graduates ill equipped to meet today’s workforce requirements.  In order to partially meet the demand for a more skilled workforce, USAID has provided scholarships, mostly at the Master’s Degree level, in targeted sectors that are aligned with USAID’s development objectives.