Panel visit to Kosovo, August 3-6, 2015

On June 12, 2015, the Inspection Panel received a complaint from Kosovo with regard to resettlement problems related to several Bank-supportedoperations, including the proposedKosovo Power Project. The complaint was submitted by community members from Hade and Obiliq municipalities and several Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) based in Kosovo. After registering thiscomplaint on June 30, 2015, a Panel Team comprised of Zeinab Elbakri (Panel Member), Dilek Barlas (Executive Secretary), and Serge Selwan (Senior Operations Officer) visited Kosovo from August 3 to 6, 2015, to ascertain its eligibility. In Pristina, the team met with representatives from the Ministries of Finance and Environment / Spatial Planning, World Bank Country Office, other donor agencies, and local CSOs. In Obiliq and surrounding areas, the team went to the Sibovc mine and the power plants (Kosovo A and B), and met with over 50 community members in Hade village and the Shkabaj resettlement site. The Panel also met with officials from the Municipality of Obiliq and Kosovo Energy Corporation (KEK).

The Panel will now produce and submit to the Board of Executive Directors (by the end of August), its Report and Recommendation analyzing the merits of the complaint and recommending whether an investigation of this complaint is warranted or not. The Board will review the report and make a decision on our recommendation normallywithin 10 business days of its submission. After the Board has deliberated on this matter, the Panel will post this Report on its website. Seephotos.