Position Paper 2: Digital Access in Kosovo

Kosovo, officially declared the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. Kosovo is bordered by four countries, which includes Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, and North Macedonia. 

For almost a century, Kosovo served as the center of a medieval Serbian empire and was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from the mid 15th century to the early 20th century. In 1998, an Albanian-led secessionist rebellion led to an international crisis (involving the Kosovo conflict.) This led to Kosovo's restoration of peace. Kosovo was then administered by the UN Interim Administrative Mission in Kosovo. Following after, the country began to develop structures of an independent country regardless of Serbia's reluctance to recognize Kosovo as an independent nation. In February 2008, Kosovo formally declared independence from Serbia. 

As Kosovo is currently a self-declared independent country, it is known to be relatively affordable for most citizens. The Expatitstan website offers a general idea of cost for things like personal items, grocery items, entertainment (like movie trips and iPad costs), and recent comparisons of living costs in Prishtina, Kosovo compared to other states and countries. Similar to sales in the United States, there are a variety of corporations that sale technological devices to individuals. 

Tech Gate is a corporation that sales products including cellphones, laptops, household appliances, self-care materials, outdoor products, etc. Tech Gate shows the most popular phone brands that sell to be Samsung, Apple iPhone, and Redmi. On the website, the cost of phones shows to range from €300 to €3000. The minimum net wage in Kosovo is €350, which would make it relatively hard for a citizen with the minimum net wage gross to purchase any highly priced digital device. 

Although it seems unlikely that the entire nation would be to afford cellphones with a low salary, in early 2025, a total of 2.06 million mobile cellphones were active in Kosovo. Some of these connections are only used for SMS and phone calls, meaning not all of the 123% of mobile device users have internet access. Data Reportal concludes more numbers revolving around the topics of mobile device usage, internet connection, and social media statistics. 

State of Digital in Kosovo 2025

• 1.62 million individuals were noted using the internet in Kosovo, which stood at 96.6% of the population.
• In January 2025, 877, 000 was the number recorded for social media users in Kosovo-- which is 52.2 percent of the total population. 
• The population of Kosovo in January 2025: 1.68 million
• From the span of a year's time from 2024 to 2025, the number of mobile connections raised by 117,000. 
• Only 86.6% of mobile connections in Kosovo are considered "boardbrand," meaning they are connected to either 3G, 4G, or 5G mobile networks. This concludes that 11.4% of mobile device users are not on mobile networks and only have access to text and phone call. 

Digital devices in Kosovo are popularly purchased through corporations. Noted earlier, Tech Gate is one of the many corporations that sale a variety of digital and electronical devices. Other business sellers you may find include but aren't limited to, Electronic Global Solution, Tech Kosovo, Xiaomi, Neptun, and Gjirafa. 

(CLICK HERE for Consolidation and Growth: Neptun opens its 15th store in Kosovo, which is also the 94th store in the region article)

Though extensive use and access to digital connections, Kosovo is recognized for having strategic policies and the energy of its entrepreneurial ecosystem. Kosovo's IT sector is transforming the nation's reputation as a dynamic and rapidly evolving part of the regional digital economy. 

Kosovo has taken significant steps to establish a robust digital infrastructure for the backbone of their IT sector. The country is ranked 11th in the IT infrastructure, which is a result of the country's prioritization of ensuring access to high-speed internet and mobile networks. Although Kosovo's IT is one of the smaller IT sectors, its economic contributions like software development and outsourcing are driving successful growth. The sector is noted to be gradually becoming a cornerstone of the national economy. 

Over the years, Kosovo has rapidly enhanced the use of digital access in the country beyond government and research-affiliated circumstances. The Kosovo Digital Economy (KODE) is not only known for promoting access to digital products (especially in rural areas) and contributing to the development of national infrastructure. This organization is also known for other morally motivated tasks like raising awareness in schools for a safer online experience. Fortunately for the people of Kosovo, many organizations are determined to continue the development of fundamental digital access in the nation.