The Kosovo Chamber of Commerce (KCC) on Thursday organized the Economic Forum “Doing Business with Finland”, where a cooperation agreement was signed with Finland Partnership, a mechanism that will enable and encourage economic cooperation.
The forum brought discussions on the opportunities for economic cooperation between Kosovo and Finland, focusing on the sectors of information technology (ICT) and mining.
Eevamari Laaksonen, Finland’s ambassador to Pristina, said that the Republic of Kosovo and Finland share the same values, mentioning that the economic partnership is built on innovation, transparency, and sustainable development.
“I must say I was pleasantly surprised to see so many Finnish and Kosovan companies present here. This shows that there is great potential for economic cooperation between Finland and Kosovo. There is also strong interest particularly in the sectors of information and communication technology (ICT), mining, manufacturing and renewable energy – all of which are in the focus of the work we do at the embassy… We share the same values, and that makes cooperation easier, both on a political level and in business. We are honest, we want to do what we say we will do, and we want to build the kind of cooperation that helps businesses grow and makes their work easier. I also mentioned humorously that Kosovo and Finland have something else in common: both our peoples love to drink a lot of coffee,” Laaksonen emphasized.
Boguslaw Gertruda, head of the Political, Economic and European Integration Section from the EU Office in Kosovo, emphasized that the European Union is the largest foreign investor in Kosovo.
He added that our cooperation has translated into a strong trade and investment relationship. According to him, the economic relations between the EU and Kosovo have been significantly strengthened, with a visible increase in exports and investments.
“Since 2024, citizens of Kosovo enjoy visa-free travel for short stays in the European Union. Through its financial instruments, the EU has invested more than 1.5 billion euros between 2007 and 2020 in reconstruction, public administration, rule of law, sustainable economic reforms and other areas… Our cooperation has translated into a strong trade and investment relationship. Only in 2024, Kosovo’s exports to the EU increased by around 9% and accounted for around 33% of Kosovo’s total exports, while imports from the EU rose by around 12% and represented about 45% of Kosovo’s total imports. The European Union is also the largest foreign investor in Kosovo. The participation of EU companies in the total foreign direct investments in Kosovo is over 60%,” said Gertruda.
Meanwhile, the president of the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce, Lulzim Rafuna, emphasized that Kosovo offers great opportunities for strategic partnership with the state of Finland, particularly in the technology and mining sectors.
He said that they will continue to cooperate even more closely with the Finnish Embassy, and that this event represents a strong commitment to deepening this cooperation.
According to him, Kosovo offers multiple opportunities for smart cooperation.
“We can find extraordinary potential for strategic partnership, especially in two sectors: information technology and the mining industry. But this is only the beginning. With the excellent foundation we have laid today, we are ‘obliged’ to work even harder. With the growth in trust and success that we are seeing, we are planning the next step: to organize a business mission to Finland and explore all opportunities for Kosovan businesses in Finland,” he emphasized.
During the forum, B2B meetings were also held between companies from Kosovo and Finland.
