Forest Resources and Sawmill Structure of Kosovo: State of the Art and Perspectives

Kosovo, located in the heart of the Balkans, was formerly a part of Yugoslavia. The breakup of Yugoslavia led not only to the creation of new countries and borders; it also had a huge impact on the transportation and availability of raw materials and goods. Kosovo’s forest products industry has been greatly affected by the country’s current political and legal environment. The creation of new boundaries, combined with trade constraints between Kosovo and some neighboring countries, has changed the amount and type of available wood raw material. Although the forest products industry is a very important part of Kosovo’s economy, this change in distribution has had a negative impact on the sawmill structure of the country. To better understand the current state of Kosovo’s forest products sector, data was collected through a survey of all sawmills in Kosovo and through information gathered from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development of Kosovo. In this paper, the forest resources and sawmill structure of Kosovo are analyzed and the availability of different species of wood in different regions of the country is presented. Based on these findings, recommendations are provided for further development of the forest and sawmill industry.