Fact-sheet 30 - Regional - 8071-00/2005 2579-00/2009 8071-01/2012
1.4
Status and trends in the standard of living
See list of documents
1.5
Access to energy and resources
See list of documents
1.6
Awareness and action (political and civil society) to mitigate
climate change and to adapt to it
See list of documents
Energy and poverty in the Western Balkans constitute an interesting nexus. More than 16% of people in the Western Balkans region are exposed to energy
poverty, meaning they do not have access to sufficient energy services to ensure a healthy lifestyle for themselves and their families. High‐energy prices and
high‐energy consumption accompanied by inadequate building insulation and low‐efficiency appliances, particularly stoves and boilers, puts heavy pressure
on the household budget of poorer segments of the population, often leaving insufficient funds for adequate food, clothing and education.
Governments in the region have used various tools to address the issue of energy poverty. Electricity prices in Bosnia and Herzegovina are uniformly low,
facilitating access to energy services but distorting the operation of the energy market. Albania (until recently), Serbia and Kosovo have applied block
electricity tariffs with a lower first‐tier level of pricing. These are designed to provide households with a minimum of electricity supply at affordable prices
while avoiding a subsidy on all consumption. In Macedonia, the government intends to replace general energy subsidies (which result from relatively low
electricity prices for all consumers) with a more targeted social assistance scheme. In Montenegro, electricity tariffs reflect a cross‐subsidy between industry
and households; the government plans to eliminate the cross‐subsidies over the next five years and replace them with targeted subsidies for the poor.
Household surveys indicate that electricity prices do not have a significant impact on household budgets, reflecting the relatively low use of electricity for
space and water heating.
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia are parties to the Energy Charter Treaty and in October 2007, Southeast European (SEE) countries,
including the Western Balkans, signed a Memorandum of Understanding that recognizes the social effects associated with energy market reforms. These
include: the impact of increasing energy prices on vulnerable groups; the impact of mine closures and of the re‐structuring/privatisation of energy
companies, including overall reduction of employment; the related impact on cities and municipalities that depend on local energy supply companies.
The energy sector in the region is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. It is also a source of air pollutants, oil spills, and nuclear waste. The energy
sector is one of the most polluting sectors of the regional economy.
Most of the countries in the region are net importers of energy. The main domestic sources of electricity generation in the region are lignite and hydropower.
Fuel wood still remain an important heat source, and wood is used extensively as a furnace fuel, often in low efficiency stoves that release greenhouse gases
and poly‐aromatic hydrocarbons that create cancer risks.
There are emerging policies and actions to increase the efficiency of energy production and consumption and switch to low or zero‐carbon energy sources.
They are however being overwhelmed by the fast growth in energy use. Obstacles to improvement include lack of investment in efficiency measures for
power generation, transport, buildings, and industry, relatively low levels of awareness among consumers, vendors, and policy makers, and a lack of up‐
front capital for new energy efficient equipment.
However, renewable electricity generation provides a significant share of the consumption of electricity in the Western Balkan countries. Almost all the
renewable electricity in the region comes from large hydropower plants. Hydropower production is strongly affected by climate factors such as low rainfall
— which occurred in 2002, 2003 and 2006.
During the nineties, much of the region experienced wars and destruction, waves of refugees, internal displacement of population, devastation of the
economy, demolition of institutions and impoverishment of citizens. Absolute poverty, in almost all of the Western Balkans is still relatively high. In some
countries extreme poverty, meaning that not even basic food needs can be met, has been registered. Groups that stand out as especially vulnerable and
excluded are the unemployed, dependents and the less educated. The poorest often live in the rural areas and in the underdeveloped regions. Socially
excluded groups include also the Roma, refugees and IDPs and persons with disabilities.
Concurrently undergoing transition, post conflict reconciliation and reconstruction and striving to pursue their European Union future, the Western Balkan
countries face the challenge of ensuring equitable and sustained economic growth that will also benefit the vulnerable groups. Almost all Western Balkan
countries, through their national plans and programs, have marked employment growth and job creation as the most important single mechanism for exiting
poverty. The second priority may be an increase of education coverage and improving the quality of education, although reduction of poverty and social
exclusion presupposes improvement in the areas of developing appropriate social safety nets, health care systems, securing adequate housing, participation
in decision making and protection of human rights.
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Fact-sheet 30 - Regional - 8071-00/2005 2579-00/2009 8071-01/2012
1.7
Functionality and strength of governmental organisation and
NGOs
See list of documents
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Macedonia there has been little progress in the area of environment, while Albania, Montenegro and Serbia have
achieved some progress and continue the alignment with the environmental acquis. In general, however, implementation and enforcement of the national
legislation remains a concern and need significant strengthening (particularly related to water management, industrial pollution control and risk
management, nature protection and air quality). The strengthening of the administrative capacity and inter‐institutional cooperation is reported to be a
priority.
While there has been some progress in alignment with the acquis in the field of environment, there was overall very little progress in the field of climate
change. While legal alignment driven by EU accession agenda is reportedly progressing well, implementation and enforcement is an issue across the region.
Other governance aspects that are prioritised in the approximation process – such as regulatory quality, government effectiveness, rule of law and control of
corruption, have an impact on the ability of the governments to perform the necessary legal changes and the institutional capacity needs associated with
implementation and enforcement.
Certain vested interests work against reforms for controlling industrial pollution or deforestation and at the same time accountability mechanisms are rather
weak. Constituencies, such as affected communities, unions and environmental organisations are considered to be not very vocal.
There has been little progress on energy (security, efficiency and renewable energy) in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. Although some
legislation remains to be adopted, the most substantial efforts that remains relate to implementation, for instance of energy efficiency and renewable energy
plans. Progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina is hampered by a lack of State‐level strategic planning and roadmap for transposition of relevant EU legislation.
In Kosovo, challenges remain in the formulation and implementation of energy policies, strengthening the role of the regulator, improving resource
efficiency, improving and diversifying supply including renewable resources, and modernising infrastructure.
In terms of protected areas, it is clear that the region’s functional systems for efficient management of protected areas are still developing. Inadequate local
participation in establishing protected areas, and insufficient or non‐existing dialogue and lack of transparency in management are obstacles to coming to
satisfactory management solutions and achieving successful trans‐boundary cooperation.
Taken together and compared with one another, the individual CSO framework laws bear considerable similarities in their structure and content in the
Western Balkan countries. NGOs from South East Europe (Serbia and UNMIK/Kosovo, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania), have
already established a model of cooperation. In 2006 they signed the Declaration for regional environmental cohesion, as an instrument to achieve sustainable
development and accelerated association with the EU in Belgrade, actively put forward an initiative for environmental regional cohesion. In addition, the
Regional Environmental Centre active in the regions of SE Europe is supporting civil society organisations that aim to strengthen their institutional capacities
in addressing crucial environmental concernes. REC is supporting joint projects on water management, biodiversity and trans‐border protected areas.
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