A roundtable discussion on the ongoing issue of suspended child benefit payments—affecting hundreds of families, primarily from the Serb community in Kosovo—will take place tomorrow in North Mitrovica. The event will be held at the Centre for Civic Energy (CEC), starting at 11 a.m.
The discussion will gather representatives from the Kosovo Agency of Statistics (including Director Avni Kastrati), the Ombudsperson Institution (Deputy Niman Hajdari), civil society members from the Mitrovica region, and affected citizens.
A representative from Kosovo’s Ministry of Finance, Labour and Transfers is also expected to attend.
The roundtable is being organized by the NGO ACDC in response to the halting of child benefit payments by the Ministry of Finance. These suspensions have had a significant impact on numerous families across Kosovo, particularly in Serb-majority areas, this NGO underlined.
According to ACDC’s announcement, the goal of the discussion is to „foster dialogue between institutions and affected communities to address key concerns and strengthen cooperation on the issue of child benefits.“
The session will be moderated by Ines Aljević Mihajlović, a parent personally affected by the benefit suspension.
Late last year, many families—mostly Serb—had their child benefit payments halted. The Ministry of Finance informed them via email that they needed to verify their documentation to confirm their place of residence, effectively requiring proof that they live in Kosovo.
Citizens were directed to report to the Centres for Social Work and subsequently to the Kosovo Post offices, with instructions to submit specific documents. Despite complying, many parents told KoSSev that their payments have not been reinstated.
In early 2025, some parents received follow-up emails from the Ministry stating that their documentation was invalid and instructing them to contact the Kosovo Agency of Statistics. Several told KoSSev that they had done so, yet their benefits remained suspended.
A grassroots group of parents from North Kosovo has also become involved, collecting data and recording individual cases. Meanwhile, the Ombudsperson’s office reported in April that they had received over 200 complaints.
Deputy Ombudsperson Srđan Sentić confirmed at the time that their office had reached out to the Ministry of Finance for clarification and announced that a recommendation would soon be issued.
That recommendation has since been published: in a letter addressed to the ministry, the Ombudsperson called for the immediate publication—on both official languages—of all decisions, guidelines, and criteria related to the verification process. The office also recommended retroactive payments for the affected families.
The Ombudsperson concluded that the suspension constitutes a violation of rights—particularly those of children from the Serb community—amounting to ethnic discrimination and unequal treatment.
Kosovo Ombudsman: Ethnic Discrimination Behind Halted Child Benefit Payments to Serbian Families
The Ministry of Finance responded with a public denial regarding the claims of residence verification for child benefit recipients, describing them as false and damaging to Kosovo’s reputation, while also noting that the right to receive these benefits is reserved only for those with residence in Kosovo.
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
