WeBER Policy Briefs

Public administration in Kosovo continues to face challenges that affect efficiency, transparency, and the quality of public service delivery. One of the most common problems for citizens is the repeated requirement to submit educational credentials such as diplomas, certificates, or transcripts often in physical or notarized form. This process not only increases the time and financial cost for citizens but also creates additional administrative work for institutions that must receive, verify, and store these documents. Although the “Once Only Principle” defined in the Law on General Administrative Procedures, requires that citizens provide their information to the state only once, this principle is still not fully implemented in practice when it comes to educational documents. In this context, the Policy Lab on “Digitalization of Education Credentials - A Prerequisite for Reducing Administrative Burden” was designed as a space for cooperation between institutions, experts, and citizens, with the goal of identifying concrete and practical solutions. During the focus group and workshop held in April and May 2025, participants emphasized that digitalizing education credentials would simplify administrative procedures, reduce duplication of documents, and help build a more citizen-centered administration. The discussions showed broad agreement that the current system, based on checking [...]

For years, applying for state-level civil-service positions in Bosnia and Herzegovina required candidates to assemble large printed portfolios, certify documents, and rely on postal delivery — a process that imposed disproportionate financial and logistical burdens on applicants outside major urban areas. The cost of participating often outweighed the challenge of proving merit. The introduction of electronic applications through konkursi.ads.gov.ba marks a decisive shift away from this exclusionary model. Candidates can now create a unified digital profile, upload documentation electronically, and receive instant, timestamped confirmation of submission. This eliminates postal uncertainty and removes a long-standing cost barrier that filtered out many qualified applicants before competition even began. By modernizing only the intake stage, the Civil Service Agency has aligned recruitment with contemporary digital-governance standards without altering evaluation procedures. Yet the impact is significant: applying is now remote, predictable, and financially neutral. The reform improves the point of interaction citizens experience most directly — the act of submitting a job application — and restores fairness by ensuring that competition entry depends on qualifications rather than wallet size or geographic proximity. The reform makes applying for civil-service jobs accessible to all by eliminating the financial and logistical burdens that once filtered [...]

This brief presents the results of a citizen perception survey on public administration services conducted in the municipalities of Prishtina, Podujeva and Mitrovica. Citizens interact with public institutions mainly for civil registration, utilities and essential documentation. Citizens across all municipalities have frequent interaction with public institutions, mainly for civil registration, utilities and basic documentation. For this survey, in Podujeva almost all interactions were with central institutions for the extraction of personal documents, in Prishtina there is a combination of central and local institutions and in Mitrovica the results show answers for the regional water utility mainly. These differences shape both access and user experience. Satisfaction with services is generally high. Many citizens note improvements in service speed, clearer procedures and better staff conduct, consistent with Public Administration Reform Strategy (PARS) objectives to reduce administrative burden and improve service delivery. However, dissatisfaction is more common in Prishtina, where longer waiting times, inconsistent information and organisational issues reflect higher institutional complexity. Digitalisation is progressing but is still behind and varies based on location. While many citizens use e-Kosova and rate it positively, only a limited share can complete services fully online. Physical visits remain necessary due to interoperability gaps and [...]

For years, applying for state-level civil-service positions in Bosnia and Herzegovina required candidates to assemble large printed portfolios, certify documents, and rely on postal delivery — a process that imposed disproportionate financial and logistical burdens on applicants outside major urban areas. The cost of participating often outweighed the challenge of proving merit. The introduction of electronic applications through konkursi.ads.gov.ba marks a decisive shift away from this exclusionary model. Candidates can now create a unified digital profile, upload documentation electronically, and receive instant, time-stamped confirmation of submission. This eliminates postal uncertainty and removes a long-standing cost barrier that filtered out many qualified applicants before competition even began. By modernizing only the intake stage, the Civil Service Agency has aligned recruitment with contemporary digital-governance standards without altering evaluation procedures. Yet the impact is significant: applying is now remote, predictable, and financially neutral. The reform improves the point of interaction citizens experience most directly — the act of submitting a job application — and restores fairness by ensuring that competition entry depends on qualifications rather than wallet size or geographic proximity. The reform makes applying for civil-service jobs accessible to all by eliminating the financial and logistical burdens that once filtered [...]

Under the WeBER 3.0 project’s Small Grant Facility, the European Policy Institute – Skopje (EPI) signed grant contracts with three civil society organisations to enhance citizen engagement in public administration reform (PAR) at the local level. The Consumers Organisation of Macedonia (COM) worked on digitalising and modernising communal services in Ohrid; Blink 42-21 developed a digital platform to improve public services in Kochani; and Pro Local focused on bringing digital municipal services closer to citizens in Bitola and on developing a digital cultural calendar for citizens there. As part of these initiatives, each organisation conducted exit polls among around 200 citizens to gather their feedback on local administrations, to inform efforts towards more transparent, accountable, and citizen-centred governance in line with EU standards. Download the brief here. ENG | MKD

This policy brief proposes concrete measures to enhance access to public services for citizens with and without disabilities in the Republic of North Macedonia (NM). It has been prepared within the Western Balkans Enablers for Reforming Public Administrations— Monitoring of Public Administration Reform project (WeBER 3.0). The methodological framework combines normative analysis of domestic legislation and institutional mechanisms with comparative alignment with United Nations (UN) conventions and jurisprudence relevant to this field. It employs a mixed-methods approach grounded in normative-legal analysis, quantitative benchmarking, and qualitative stakeholder insights. It draws on the analytical findings from the focus group held on 12 May 2025. This brief highlights systemic gaps in the provision of public services for vulnerable groups of citizens with and without disabilities. The framework adheres to the Principles of Public Administration (also known as the SIGMA Principles) to evaluate the coherence between legal frameworks, institutional practices, and inclusive equality. Download the brief here. ENG | MKD