The Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, thanked donors on Tuesday who have offered to help find permanent housing for 60 families from the Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian communities.

Kurti stated that these families have returned to Kosovo from North Macedonia and Montenegro and have been living in difficult conditions.

They are temporarily sheltered in Obilic.

“Last year, I saw a photo of one of the families on social media. They returned to Kosovo but without shelter. Instead of a home, they created an improvised tent on agricultural land. Children and adults have tried everything to live with dignity,” Kurti said at a press conference.

He thanked civil society activists who brought attention to this situation.

Among other things, Kurti mentioned that these families have benefited from aid packages offered by the Ministry for Communities and Returns, and the Ministry of Local Government was also involved in this matter.

“The situation can often be both complicated and simple. The fact that this group of families ended up in this situation was related to international, state, and local responsibilities,” Kurti said.

At the beginning of discussions on finding permanent housing for these families, British Ambassador to Kosovo Nicholas Abbott thanked the municipalities of Ferizaj and Gjilan, which expressed readiness to allocate land for building homes for these families.

Abbott called on all individuals who wish to return to Kosovo to “have access to health, education, and for the integration process to be as smooth as possible”.

According to 2011 population registration data, there are 8,824 Roma, 15,436 Ashkali, and 11,524 Egyptian people living in Kosovo.

The Kosovo Statistics Agency does not have data on the education level of these communities.