A survey of IDPs in Kosovo was conducted in 2016 under the guidance of a steering body (Profiling Management Group) comprising the Ministry for Communities and Return of Kosovo, the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration of the Republic of Serbia, UNHCR and Danish Refugee Council, with technical support from the Joint IDP Profiling Service. The survey covered key demographic and socio-economic characteristics of IDPs, their access to rights and services, their preferences for their permanent location of residence, and the challenges faced in achieving their preferred durable solution. Key findings include:
- IDPs have lower overall school attendance rates compared to the general Kosovo population, and women show overall lower access to education than men. Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs face particular challenges in relation to education. The reported illiteracy level of the surveyed Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs (18 percent) is higher than those of the general Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian population (13 percent) and the general Kosovo population (4 percent). A large proportion of individuals have completed no formal education (41 percent of men and 54 percent of women) reaching 75 percent among the population aged 60 and above. Lower school attendance rates can be observed than among the general Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian population and compared to the general Kosovo population, across all education levels.
- Many IDPs are residing in inadequate conditions (makeshift shelters, informal settlements or collective centers). 12 percent of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs are living in inadequate conditions; all Serbs are living in collective centers.
- IDPs have much lower home ownership rates compared to the general Kosovo population: 56 percent of Albanian IDPs, 39 percent of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs, 33 percent of Serb IDPs in private accommodation, and 0 percent of Serb IDPs in collective centers, compared to 96 percent of the general Kosovo population (and 83 percent of the general Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian population)..
- Many IDPs are living in dwellings that are not connected to the sewerage system or do not have running water. 17 percent of Albanian IDPs, 34 percent of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs, and 27 percent of Serb IDPs in collective centers are living in dwellings that are not connected to the sewerage system. 12 percent of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs and 27 percent of Serb IDPs in collective centers are living in dwellings without running water.
- Many IDPs reported struggling to access health care. 7 percent of Albanian IDPs, 17 percent of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs, 12 percent of Serb IDPs in private accommodation and 42 percent of Serb IDPs in collective centers.
- A significant share of IDP households rely primarily on social benefits as a source of income: 8 percent of Albanian IDPs, 67 percent of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs, 13 percent of Serb IDPs in private accommodation and 27 percent of Serb IDPs in collective centers (against a 4 percent rate among the general Kosovo population). Among Albanian IDPs, pensions were reported as the main income source for over a fourth of Albanian IDPs against 11 percent of the general population. Among Roma/Ashkali/ Egyptian IDPs, 17 percent reported salaries or wages as the main source of income (against a 57 percent rate among the general Kosovo population). Among Serb IDPs, salaries were reported as the main source of income by 57 percent of the Serb IDPs in private accommodation and by 17 percent of the collective-center residents (compared to 57 percent in general population).
- A substantial proportion of IDP households have no employed members: 40 percent of Albanian IDP households, 80 percent of Roma/Ashkali/ Egyptian IDP households, 40 percent of Serb IDP households in private accommodation and 70 percent of Serb IDP households in collective centers. There are high rates of unemployment among IDPs compared to the non-displaced population: 41 percent among Albanian IDPs, 84 percent among Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs, 48 percent of IDPs in private accommodation (reaching 71 percent of youth) and 62 percent of IDPs in collective centers, compared to 28 percent of the non-displaced. For Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs, the unemployment rate reaches 92 percent of women and 87 percent of youth. Even though the labor force participation rate is higher among Albanian IDPs than the general population (43 percent versus 39 percent) due to much higher labor participation rates for female Albanian IDPs relative to females in the general population (31 percent versus 19 percent), nevertheless the unemployment rate among Albanian IDPs is much higher than the general population (41 percent versus 28 percent).
- On average IDPs in Kosovo earn less than the general population. Substantial proportions of employed IDPs earn less than EUR 300 per month (50 percent of Albanian IDPs, 100 percent of Roma/Ashkali/ Egyptian IDPs, 66 percent of Serb IDPs in private accommodation and 82 percent of Serb IDPs in collective centers) compared to an average of between EUR 300 and EUR 400 in Kosovo.
- Food represents a higher proportion of monthly expenditures among surveyed IDPs. 55 percent of monthly expenditures for Albanian IDPs and 59 percent among Roma/Askali/Egyptian IDPs, against an average of 42 percent for the general Kosovo population.
- Few IDP households had regained access to their properties in places of origin. 928 IDP households possessed one or more properties in their place of origin, with 530 properties were reported as illegally occupied and 801 properties as damaged or destroyed. Few households reported having regained access to their property after submitting a claim for repossession (11 percent of Albanian IDPs, and 4 percent of Serb IDPs in private accommodation).
- The majority of Albanian IDPs (62 percent) prefer to return to the place of origin, while local integration is preferred by 22 percent of the surveyed households. The majority of Roma/Ashkali/Egyptian IDPs (80 percent) prefer to integrate in the place of displacement, while return to the place of origin is preferred by under 5 percent of the surveyed households. The majority of Serb IDPs (93 percent of those in private accommodation and 83 percent of those in collective centers) prefer to integrate in the place of displacement, while return to the place of origin is preferred by 1.4 percent and 1.5 percent of the surveyed households in the respective groups.