Our new report shows that excluding women from the labour market is costing Kosovo over 20% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. If women participated in employment at the same level as men, the country could unlock billions in long-term economic gains, higher productivity, and stronger public finances.

This is not just a gender issue, it’s an economic one. Investing in childcare, family-friendly workplaces, and fair labour laws would boost growth, raise household incomes, and strengthen Kosovo’s competitiveness.

Women’s employment is one of the strongest growth strategies Kosovo has.

Women in Kosovo’s economy are still subjected to many challenges, in the labor force, more than 80 percent of the women are inactive, and for the remaining women who are active, the unemployment rate is around 40 percent.

Kosovo’s economy falls short of the potential it has to grow due to numerous issues, one of them being the under-representation of women in the economy. 

Women in Kosovo's economy face many challenges; in the workforce, more than 80% of women are inactive, and the main reason they give for this inactivity is family and care obligations.