Capital

Kosovo

name: Pristina (Prishtine, Prishtina)

geographic coordinates: 42 40 N, 21 10 E

time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology: the name may derive from a Proto-Slavic word reconstructed as "pryshchina," meaning "spring (of water)"

Citizenship

Kosovo

citizenship by birth: no

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Kosovo

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Regierungstyp

Kosovo

parliamentary republic

Legal system

Kosovo

civil law system; note - the European Union Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) retained limited executive powers within the Kosovo judiciary for complex cases from 2008 to 2018

Suffrage

Kosovo

18 years of age; universal

Area

Kosovo

total: 10,887 sq km

land: 10,887 sq km

water: 0 sq km

Land use

Kosovo

agricultural land: 52.8% (2018 est.)

arable land: 27.4% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 1.9% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 23.5% (2018 est.)

forest: 41.7% (2018 est.)

other: 5.5% (2018 est.)

Location

Kosovo

Southeastern Europe, between Serbia and Macedonia

Age structure

Kosovo

0-14 years: 23.1% (male 235,379/female 218,359)

15-64 years: 68.75% (male 706,495/female 643,982)

65 years and over: 8.15% (2023 est.) (male 69,676/female 90,436)

Birth rate

Kosovo

14.6 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate

Kosovo

7.7 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Languages

Kosovo

Albanian (official) 94.5%, Bosnian 1.7%, Serbian (official) 1.6%, Turkish 1.1%, other 0.9% (includes Romani), unspecified 0.1%; note - in municipalities where a community's mother tongue is not one of Kosovo's official languages, the language of that community may be given official status according to the 2006 Law on the Use of Languages

note: these estimates may under-represent Serb, Romani, and some other ethnic minority languages because they are based on the 2011 Kosovo national census, which excluded northern Kosovo (a largely Serb-inhabited region) and was partially boycotted by Serb and Romani communities in southern Kosovo (2011 est.)

major-language sample(s): Libri i fakteve boterore, burimi i pazevendesueshem per informacione elementare (Albanian)

Knjiga svetskih činjenica, neophodan izvor osnovnih informacija. (Serbian)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Life expectancy at birth

Kosovo

total population: 72.2 years (2023 est.)

male: 69.9 years

female: 74.5 years

Major urban areas - population

Kosovo

218,782 PRISTINA (capital) (2020)

Median age

Kosovo

total: 31.7 years (2023 est.)

male: 31.3 years

female: 32 years

Net migration rate

Kosovo

-0.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution

Kosovo

population clusters exist throughout the country, the largest being in the east in and around the capital of Pristina

Population growth rate

Kosovo

0.62% (2023 est.)

Total fertility rate

Kosovo

1.88 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Education expenditures

Kosovo

NA

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

Kosovo

-2.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

GDP (purchasing power parity)

Kosovo

$19,600,000,000

Industrial production growth rate

Kosovo

7.76% (2021 est.)

Labor force

Kosovo

500,300 (2017 est.)

note: includes those estimated to be employed in the gray economy

Population below poverty line

Kosovo

17.6% (2015 est.)

Unemployment rate

Kosovo

30.5% (2017 est.)

27.5% (2016 est.)

note: Kosovo has a large informal sector that may not be reflected in these data

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

Kosovo

total: 52.4% male: 47.3% female: 65.4% (2016 est.)

Public debt

Kosovo

21.2% of GDP (2017 est.)

19.4% of GDP (2016 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

Kosovo

3.35% (2021 est.)

0.2% (2020 est.)

2.68% (2019 est.)

Exports

Kosovo

$3.138 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$1.687 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$2.312 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

Exports - partners

Kosovo

United States 16%, Albania 15%, North Macedonia 12%, Germany 8%, Italy 8% (2021)

Imports

Kosovo

$6.128 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$4.187 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$4.454 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

Imports - partners

Kosovo

Germany 13%, Turkey 13%, China 10%, Serbia 7%, Italy 6% (2021)

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad

Kosovo

$275 million (31 December 2017 est.) $230 million (31 December 2016 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home

Kosovo

$3,590,000,000

Country Comparison :: Roadways

Kosovo

2,012

Airports

Kosovo

6 (2021)

Crude oil - exports

Kosovo

0

Crude oil - imports

Kosovo

0 bbl/day (2015 est.)

Crude oil - production

Kosovo

0 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Electricity - consumption

Kosovo

3,957,000,000

Electricity - exports

Kosovo

885,700,000

Electricity - imports

Kosovo

557,000,000

Electricity - production

Kosovo

5,638,000,000

Internet users

Kosovo

total: 1,756,300 (2021 est.)

percent of population: 91% (2021 est.)

Natural gas - exports

Kosovo

0

Natural gas - imports

Kosovo

0 cu m (2017 est.)

Natural gas - production

Kosovo

0 cu m (2017 est.)

Railways

Kosovo

total: 437 km (2020)

Roadways

Kosovo

total: 2,012 km (2015)

paved: 1,921 km (2015) (includes 78 km of expressways)

unpaved: 91 km (2015)

Telephones - fixed lines

Kosovo

total subscriptions: 383,763 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 25 (2022 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

Kosovo

total subscriptions: 1,777,859 (2022 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 98 (2022 est.)

Disputes - international

Kosovo

NATO-led Kosovo Force peacekeepers under UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo authority continue to ensure a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement for all Kosovo citizens

Kosovo-Albania: none identified

Kosovo-Montenegro: their 2015 demarcation agreement was ratified by Montenegro in December 2015 and by Kosovo in March 2018, but the actual demarcation has not been completed; as of March 2021, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin KURTI said that after the new Montenegrin government is formed, he would broach the subject of reopening the agreement

Kosovo-North Macedonia: Kosovo and North Macedonia completed demarcation of their boundary in September 2008; both countries ratified the demarcation documents on October 17, 2009, after high-level consultations resolved the disputed section of border around Debelde/Tanusevci

Kosovo-Serbia: Serbia with several other states protest the US’s and other countries’ recognition of Kosovo's declaration of its status as a sovereign and independent state in February 2008; ethnic Serbian municipalities along Kosovo's northern border challenge final status of Kosovo-Serbia boundary; Kosovo’s and Serbia’s temporary agreement on license plates expired on 21 April 2022; the two countries are meeting on 13 May to reach a permanent agreement