The Republic of Kosovo and the EFTA member states (Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein) have met in Geneva for the first round of negotiations towards a free trade agreement.
The Ministry of Industry, Entrepreneurship, and Trade through the negotiating team composed and led by Zef Dedaj, Acting General Director of KIESA, Arjeta Shaqiri Latifi, Chief of Cabinet of the Minister Rozeta Hajdari, and other representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Kosovo Customs, the Kosovo Competition Authority, and the Food and Veterinary Agency, have conducted negotiations with the EFTA delegation led by Karin Büchel, Minister at the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland.
The negotiating parties discussed trade in goods, rules of origin, trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, competition, trade remedies, legal issues and dispute settlement, trade and sustainable development, and intellectual property rights. Meanwhile, government investments, services and procurements were addressed by the heads of delegations and it was agreed that at this level they will be discussed again in the second round of negotiations to be held in the Republic of Kosovo.
The EFTA countries remain important trade partners of the Republic of Kosovo. Trade exchanges with these countries have continuously increased. According to data from Kosovo Customs, in 2019 Kosovo's exports amounted to 26.28 million euros, while in 2021 exports increased significantly, marking 52.09 million euros. As for imports from the EFTA countries, in 2019 the value of imports amounted to 33.86 million euros, while in 2021 it amounted to 35.6 million euros, implying a positive trade balance.
The main goal of this agreement is the further expansion of the presence of Kosovo products in the EFTA markets, the creation of a competitive environment, the elimination of trade barriers with a special focus on increasing exports and investments.
The discussions were constructive and paved the way for the conclusion of a mutually beneficial free trade agreement. Before the end of 2022, Delegations agreed to hold a second round of trade negotiations in Prishtina.
