The Tech Park Prishtina opened in the outskirts of the Kosovan capital on October 12. 

The tech park is intended to further develop the ICT sector, already an important part of Kosovo’s economy, following strong growth in recent years. 

The park is located in a previously unused building, spanning 4,000 square metres and owned by the Ministry of Industry, Entrepreneurship and Trade, that has been given to Kosovo Association of Information and Communication Technology (STIKK) for five years. 

The government of Kosovo invested €1.2mn in the project through the Ministry of Economy.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the opening confirms that Kosovo “is following the path of countries that use the power of information and communication technology to create jobs, to promote economic growth and to improve the quality of life for citizens”.

"The investment in this technology park shows our commitment to the development of technology and innovation that are the foundations of the economy of the 21st century,” said the prime minister. 

The park will support the development of startups and the ICT sector in general, as well promoting cooperation among all parties within the innovation ecosystem, a government statement said.

Minister of Industry, Enterprise and Trade Rozeta Hajdari said: "the park is expected to be one of the main drivers of the development and transformation of our industry through development of innovation and entrepreneurship."

Vjollca Cavolli, executive director of STIKK, said in an interview with bne IntelliNews earlier in October that there has been strong interest from startups in the tech park. While the office space is limited to companies with up to 30 employees, Çavolli said larger companies have proposed relocating their R&D departments to the tech park where they can benefit from collaborations with startups and students.

The project has been many years in the making. As early as 2013, STIKK started talking to the government about the need for a tech park. However, it took a long time to get the project off the ground, not least because of the frequent changes of government in Kosovo.

STIKK is now talking with the Pristina municipality about turning the land surrounding the tech park into an economic zone for ICT companies. 

Speaking on October 12, Kurti announced that the government with an €8mn investment, together with the German government, with a €5mn investment, are also working on the Innovation and Training Park in Prizren.