Balkan Kidz

In the Western Balkans – where long-standing issues, such as ethnic and religious tensions, lack of environmental sustainability, and corruption are prevalent – Balkan youths are responsible for creating a better future for themselves. 

Notorious for political instability, corruption, and bloody wars, the Balkans have been regarded as one of the most violent and problematic regions in the world. This southeastern European region, specifically the Western Balkans, currently grapples with tensions between people of different ethnicities and religions, unstable governments, continuous harm to the environment, and, most notably, ‘brain drains’, the emigration of educated and highly-trained people from a country.

According to an article published by the German Marshall Fund in August of 2022, “Youth brain drain is one of the most worrisome problems for the Western Balkan Six countries (WB6)—Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Serbia. The pace and intensity of youth brain drain rank the WB6 among the top brain drain leaders in the world, with estimations to lose a quarter to half of its skilled and educated young citizens in the forthcoming decades.”

“I was part of the generation that was born right after the [Kosovo] war and was able to witness the Declaration of Independence and see the country go through so much transition. Migration of the population was also a very defining moment of the experience,” says Diellza Ibrahimi, a Kosovan Young European Ambassador for the European Union (EU). “I remember so many classmates suddenly [stop] coming to school and later finding out that they’d moved somewhere in Europe and the US. I think the narrative here for a long time has been that the Western Balkans, in general, doesn’t offer any opportunities, and that it is for the best to simply move elsewhere. I do not blame anyone for that choice, I very well understand their perspective and struggle.”

(Photo courtesy of Diellza Ibrahimi)

A photo from a Young European Ambassadors (YEA) Selection Event.

Kerim Sefer, a journalist for Al Jazeera Balkans, believes that “[t]he unfavorable political climate also affects the departure of people to other countries in Europe and the world. It is understandable that migration is a natural demographic characteristic of every society, but in Bosnia and Herzegovina this trend is becoming a generational problem. Departures are a motive for creating a psychology of insecurity. Still, this is a problem that the region of the Western Balkans also faces, but my perception is that Bosnia and Herzegovina is in a much more difficult position, firstly because of the division of society, but also the need to unify its social fabric.”

At the beginning of 2020, the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report found that, globally, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Croatia ranked amongst the countries most affected by brain drain. Young people have struggled in these job markets due to inadequate opportunities and low wages. As a result, many have sought better professions and living standards abroad.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is already notorious for being the country with the world’s most complicated government system. As a result of the Dayton Peace Accords, the document that would put the brutal Bosnian War to an end in 1995, the country is composed of two entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Republika Srpska. With a tripartite presidency – one ethnic Serb, one Croat, and one Bosnian – the presence of neighboring countries in Bosnia and Herzegovina has perpetuated ethnic divisions among people. The divide between Orthodox Serbs, Bosnian Muslims and Catholic Croats is still prevalent, and it is the leading reason as to why the EU granted only Bosnia membership candidate status in December 2022.

It was on February 17, 2008 that Kosovo became independent from Serbia, after the Kosovo War from 1998-1999. However, some European countries – including Belarus, Greece, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine, and Bosnia and Herzegovina – do not recognize it as a country, which is one of the leading reasons as to why Kosovo has only passed as a potential EU candidate.

Reprinted graph of the desire for emigration among youth, by country, 2018, from the Aspen Institute. (Note: darker shades of blue indicate WB6 countries while lighter ones indicate EU member countries). 

According to a 2022 Human Rights Watch World Report on Kosovo, the country also grapples with tensions between ethnic Albanians and Serbs, accountability for war crimes, the treatment of minorities (such as Roma, Ashkali, and Balkan Egyptians) as well as issues regarding LGBT+ rights, women’s rights, freedom of media, and asylum and displaced persons.

“We know that this is a region that has such deep divisions, so it is important that young people, who should be the initiators of the dialogue, lead the policies of their countries in some better directions,” Sefer said. “This is difficult now, especially since young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina shyly – and very slowly – enter politics.”

Environmental sustainability is also a pressing matter in the region. According to The World Bank, Sarajevo, Skopje, Belgrade are some of the most polluted cities, especially during the winter months, when pollutants from coal plants, residential heating, vehicles, industry, and other sources are constantly in use.

“There are no policies or commitments from our government that strategically will help combat climate change or sustain the environment,” says Albina Abaspahić, a Sustainability Analyst for an international energy, sustainability and technology consultant partner. “Today, there are only policies around renewable energy implementation….The [Bosnian] government should set the standards and keep up with others. I believe the first thing that they should do is to set policies and commitments that will reduce impacts on the environment.”

In May of 2021, The World Bank reported that “[w]ith 175 deaths per 100,000 people in 2019, Serbia topped a list of death rates from pollution among European countries and placed 9th overall on the global list – higher than India.”

“My expectations for the future Balkans are ‘high,’” Abaspahić concluded. “I expect [the Western Balkans] to be tolerant, inclusive, accepting, understanding, open-minded, and sustainable. Expectations are one, but the reality is something else….I hope young people will wake up one day from the vicious dream they are in and start looking at things differently. I do that by being tolerant, inclusive, accepting, understanding, open-minded, and sustainable. I surround myself with people of different backgrounds, ethnicity, and religions. I include them in my culture, and they include me, too.”

“I personally believe that the number of young people who are interested in politics, social policy and creating change is on the rise,” Ibrahimi said. “With each generation you can notice how much more open-minded, informed and involved they are. What contributes to this belief of mine is the youth involvement in sharing activism related information online, as well as their willingness to show up and contribute in real life when it matters (especially in the protests against gender-based violence that took place recently in Kosovo). Surely there will always be people who hold no such interests but I like to believe that we are headed in the right direction.”