The OKA assesses that Pristina has failed in waste management

The National Audit Office has found failures in waste management in the capital. Its report for the period 2023-2025 highlights the lack of institutional oversight, out-of-service trucks and high costs for private operators.

The Municipality of Pristina has failed to be effective in waste collection in recent years, the National Audit Office has found.

The report on waste management in the capital for the period 2023-2025 emphasizes that the current system does not function efficiently.

The Auditor General, Vlora Spanca, stated in a press conference on Monday that one of the most worrying findings of the report is the failure of almost all links of institutional oversight. 

"This process had failed to be implemented at almost all levels by all parties. Some of the reasons that have contributed to this situation are, the Board of Directors of the KRM "Pastrimi", which is responsible for strategic decisions and supervision of the Chief Executive Officer, has not exercised effective supervision over the activity of the KRM, because the current waste problem in the city was almost never addressed in the Board meetings. Instead, the Board was dealing with other issues such as financial and administrative issues," said Spanca.

The report states that the Municipality has engaged private operators who cost more than the "Pastrimi" RWC. 

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"The private operator was more expensive by about 10 euros/ton compared to the Public Company, increasing the Municipality's costs for waste collection by 149 thousand euros, for the period April-December 2024. The price resulted in 61.88 euros/ton for the "Pastrimi" WRC, while 71.15 euros/ton for the private EO. Despite contracting private EOs, the Municipality had not managed to make significant improvements in terms of waste collection in the capital," said Spanca.

The OKA has also noted a decrease in the number of waste collection trucks and the failure of investment plans for their replacement.

And the new director of Public Services in the capital, who comes from the Democratic Party, Leutrim Retkoceri, has not spoken about the report, saying that it belongs to the "Pastrimi" company. 

And for the waste situation, he accused the central government of, as he said, a blockade.

"The situation when we entered the Municipality was that on one hand we found a decision by the Ministry that blocked a landfill and made it impossible for it to work, on the other hand we had an entire capital filled with bulky waste. A choice must be found here, and not situations of conflict and decisions must be thought about the effects they have," he said.

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Retkoceri has announced that a solution has already been found for the landfill and they expect both the "Pastrimi" Company and private operators to complete their work so that there are no more problems with waste in the capital.

Residents of the capital, especially during this and last year, have been faced with bulky waste piles in various neighborhoods for months. Citizens in other municipalities where the KRM "Pastrimi" operates have also faced similar problems.