AmCham position on the Draft Law on Business Organizations

Prishtina, March 17, 2018 – The American Chamber of Commerce in Kosovo recognizes the significant gender diversity gaps in Kosovo, while supports and promotes a bigger inclusion of women in the boardrooms. However, AmCham voices its serious concern over the unprecedented scope of the diversity amendment placed into the Law on Business Organizations by the Kosovo Assembly, which imposes a gender quota on all joint stock companies registered in Kosovo, and which will require companies to comply within six months.

AmCham lauds efforts to identify and resolve the very serious gender issues faced in Kosovo today and continues to support reasonable and responsible efforts to address them. However, the scope of amendment is not only in clear violation of the Constitution of the country, which provides for a free competition market economy as the basis of the economic order of Kosovo, but is also an unprecedented regulative act in any of the countries of the modern democratic world, and as such will strongly discourage much needed foreign investments.

AmCham does not support such a broad intrusion across all joint stock companies, therefore it calls on responsible institutions to address all the concerns raised by the private sector companies and their representatives, who should be an integral part of the consultation and dialogue process in the adoption of any such interventions.

Going forward, AmCham remains committed to cooperate with all stakeholders in developing policies which would aim to reduce the current gender gap and inequalities existing in the private sector.