West Balkan Research Articles

The prevalence of disability among Roma and non-Roma children in four West Balkan countries

BackgroundVery little is known about the prevalence of disability among Roma children. ObjectiveTo estimate the prevalence of disability and significant cognitive delay among Roma and non-Roma children aged from 2 to 17 years in four West Balkan countries. MethodsSecondary analysis of data collected in Round 6 of UNICEF's Multiple Indicators Cluster Surveys. Nationally representative samples of 6290 Roma and 13,005 non-Roma children in Kosovo, Montenegro, the Republic of North Macedonia, and Serbia. ResultsRoma children were twice as likely to have a disability, a less severe disability, multiple disabilities, and severe cognitive delay than their peers and were more likely to have functional limitations in all but one of the domains investigated. ConclusionsDisability is significantly more prevalent among Roma children aged 2–17 years than among their non-Roma peers in four Western Balkan countries. Future research should focus on the extent to which differences in disability may be attributable to differential rates of exposure to a range of social determinants.

Sleep quality and patterns of young West Balkan adults during the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study

ObjectivesTo evaluate the sleep patterns among young West Balkan adults during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.Design and settingCross-sectional study conducted using an anonymous online questionnaire based on established...

Mining and Metallurgical Waste as Potential Secondary Sources of Metals—A Case Study for the West Balkan Region

The aim of this paper is to present a chemical composition and quantities of mining and processing waste landfills material developed during historical mining and smelting. After detailed inspection, it was found that approximately 2.6 gigatons of the waste had been deposited at 1650 sites, covering almost 65 km2. More than half of this material, 55%, is characterized as conventional mining waste, 37% belongs to the processing tailings, and 8% to metallurgical waste. Most of these tailing sites are unclaimed, presenting a source of contamination for nearby communities. According to the literature data collected and additional chemical analyses, in accordance with zero-waste philosophy, about 42 promising locations (c. 270 million tons) could be selected, where various advanced eco-innovative methods of recovery could possibly apply. The areas with the highest prospective recovery are Serbia and Kosovo. In accordance with the metal prices achieved in March 2022, it is estimated that the recovery of tailings could bring up to 18,100 million USD, which is much more compared to the prices of March 2020—10,600 million USD—when the commodity market was governed by the COVID-19 restrictions. In addition to the commercial value of the metals, the environmental aspect should not be forgotten after the application of reuse and recycling concepts.

New data on the stratigraphy of the Middle Jurassic siliciclastic rocks from the West Balkan Mountains (West Bulgaria)

The present study is a contribution to the lithostratigraphy of Middle Jurassic strata in the area of the Zimevitsa Plateau (West Balkan Mts, West Bulgaria). Based on its lithological and regional properties, the Dobravitsa Member is distinguished from the surrounding rocks of the Etropole Formation. The new member consists of alternating shales, siltstones and fine-grained sandstones. It also contains abundant siderite and calcite concretions, which are distributed in discrete stratigraphic horizons in both the mudrocks and coarser lithologies. Fossils are extremely rare. Poorly preserved ammonites and belemnites are found only. Based on several ammonite finds, the Dobravitsa Member of the Etropole Formation is assigned to a narrow stratigraphic interval of the lower Bajocian (unlimited, probably lower part of the Witchellia laeviuscula Zone). Although it has restricted lateral distribution, which is exclusively confined to its type-area, the Dobravitsa Member has a proper place in the formal Bulgarian Jurassic lithostratigraphic scheme, as it represents a discernible atypical development of the Etropole Formation in the West Balkan Mts region. Another emphasis of this study is laid on concretions from the Etropole Formation. Besides siderite and calcite concretions, a few examples of iron oxyhydroxide concretions, from localities outside the Zimevitsa Plateau area, are also described. The latter are also an atypical component of the Etropole Formation, which deserves a further special study and systematization, as it implies unknown history of this lithofacies, in both depositional and diagenetic terms.

Is border carbon adjustment the right tool for the power sector?

ABSTRACT Carbon leakage occurs in any carbon pricing regime that is not global, which means all of them so far. That is inherently unfair to sectors that are subject to a carbon price but compete with those that are not. The European Green Deal aims to rectify the problem in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) by moving beyond the current second (or third) best option, which allocates emissions quotas for free for industrial sectors, and by putting a price on carbon at the EU border for selected but not yet named sectors. Our recent model-based analysis compares the impact of a future border carbon adjustment (BCA) mechanism for the power sector with the option of extending the EU ETS to countries exporting power to the EU. We demonstrate how differences in the two policy tools translate into markedly different impacts. We conclude that expanding the geographical scope of the EU ETS is a more effective climate policy tool than a BCA. First, it would reduce emissions, while a BCA would not. Second, emission trading brings real competition: Regions neighbouring the EU will be better integrated into the EU single market with a level playing field and lower greenhouse gas emissions. On the other hand, the BCA would fence off the EU power sector and increase greenhouse gas emissions. Third, compared to a border carbon tax, expanding the ETS also yields more revenue to exporting neighbouring countries facing higher-than-average challenges to change their fossil-heavy power systems. Key policy insights The introduction of a new policy tool, the border carbon adjustment mechanism, which aims to create fair competition and trigger more ambitious climate policy action in trading partners, is a legitimate action of the European Union. However, the extension of EU ETS is a more effective climate policy tool than a border carbon adjustment mechanism as the latter increases overall emissions. The border carbon adjustment mechanism is rather a competition policy tool that provides a level playing field for electricity producers inside and outside the EU. The price impact of the policy tool choice merits attention: the extension of the EU ETS drives up prices in neighbouring countries (except the West Balkan region), but the additional quota revenues can be used to alleviate the burden on vulnerable social groups.

External Two Stage DEA Analysis of Bank Efficiency in West Balkan Countries

Since the beginning of the application of the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model in various areas of the economy, it has found its wide application in the field of finance, more specifically banks, in the last few years. The focus of this research was to determine the sustainability of the intermediate function of banks, especially in recent years when interest rates on deposits have been at a minimum level. The research was divided into two parts, wherein the first part determined the efficiency of the intermediate function of banks in the countries of the Western Balkans in the period from 2015 to 2019. The second part approached the regression analysis in which we determined the influence of the bank size, type of bank, and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity on the defined efficiency. In the first stage we applied the output-oriented DEA model using deposits, labor costs, and capital as input variables; on the other side, we used loans and investments as output variables. We used data from the revised financial statements of the banks operating in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Albania. The results of our study showed that there is a difference in efficiency levels between countries and within countries in the considered time period. Furthermore, Tobit regression analysis showed a significant and negative influence of the bank type and M&A on relative technical efficiency of banks, and a positive and significant relationship between bank size and relative efficiency. These findings suggest that large commercial banks can sustain on the West Balkan market. It is to be expected that less efficient small banks will be taken over by large and more efficient banks.

Zadovoljstvo poslom kod konvencionalno zaposlenih i zaposlenih na daljinu - uticaj pola, godina starosti i obrazovanja

This paper examines and analyses the differences in job satisfaction among the conventionally employed and teleworkers. Differences were examined for three control variables: gender, age and education of the respondents. The research was conducted in West Balkan countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia), and included 313 respondents (conventionally employed and teleworkers). Teleworkers are more satisfied than conventionally employed. This is most evident through satisfaction with all forms of compensation, procedures and associates. Job satisfaction is higher in men, both those who work conventionally and who telework. Men are significantly more appreciative of opportunities for advancement, as well as achieving additional benefits and rewards. Younger respondents have greater job satisfaction than older respondents, but this only applies to the conventionally employed. There are no differences in job satisfaction among teleworkers in terms of dependence on age. Job satisfaction does not depend on the respondents' level of education of, and this applies to both conventionally employed and teleworkers. Companies that apply telework evaluate the results of their employees' work and the contribution they provide to the company more objectively, and accordingly, they reward and promote employees adequately. Thus, all age groups and educational categories of employees see their chance in teleworking conditions.

The European Union and the creation of the new security periphery

The European Union (EU) enlargement went through strong processes of Europeanisation that, apart from revealing the regulatory power of the EU, reflect its ability to transform the identity of those countries candidates to membership. Considered as one of the most important and successful instruments of foreign and security action, the succeeding enlargement policies to the East, particularly those of 2004 and 2007, represented a significant contribution for the establishment of an extended security community. An assessment on the countries of the West Balkans is presented, since their processes of accession to the EU now extend for more than a decade. The undeniable geopolitical and geostrategic significance, shown throughout history by the risks of spreading the internal conflicts across the European borders, make this region one of the most vital of the EU’s periphery, to its security. In spite of this significance, the current “enlargement fatigue”, motivated largely by the lack of consensus amongst member-states, drives away the countries of the Balkans from veering towards the EU, thereby rendering them more susceptible to the influence of foreign players, particularly that of China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Turkey. In that context, it is argued that the EU, by setting aside the enlargement politic to the countries of the West Balkans, gives a deeply negative sign to the region, moving them away from the criteria established for the europeanization processes reached so far, and as a consequence, placing themselves under de influence of foreign players, circumstances which jeopardise the stability in the EU periphery.

Does the Achievement of Gender Equality in Society Reflect on Gender Issues in Corporate Governance: The Case of the West Balkan's Banking Sector?

Driven by the idea that women do not realize their full potential in society based on not being equally paid, having lower education level than men and facing discrimination based on maternity leave have been a primary motivation to do the research on the following sources of data: HDI; GDI and GII indexes published for four West Balkan countries and average data of women on boards for the same countries experienced in the most developed and female-dominated industry such as banking. This idea helps us formulate primary research questions -if a country has a better human and gender development index it should have more women that actively participle in business and have a real influence on decision making. Our findings are in line with the fact that Slovenia and Croatia are leading countries in the West Balkan region in terms of the index mentioned, therefore shaping a better place for the position of women in society. On the other hand, Serbia has the lowest value of 2 out of 3 indexes. The similarity between bank board diversity can be found between Serbia and Slovenia. In those two countries, women occupy more positions on the executive boards, but fewer on the supervisory board. The situation is different for Croatia and Montenegro where more women are included in supervisory boards. Contribution is that in Western Balkan countries it is arguable that women have no real influence on businesses and results of operations in the banking sector despite the fact that the mentioned countries have quite a good ranking in the gender development reports.

West Balkan in the political strategy of European Union

West Balkan in the political strategy of European Union

ENERGY PROSPECTS IN WESTERN BALKAN REGION ‒ MONTENEGRO CASE

To meet new energy demands and climate targets for 2030, the EU member states and West Balkans countries are requested to introduce the National Energy and Climate Plans (NECP) for the period from 2021 to 2030. That implies implementing clean, affordable and renewable energies to reach a climate-neutral economy by 2050. This will require moving towards the long-term goals set by Power agreements, which means to perform economic transformations to reach broader sustainable development goals. To achieve those goals national long-term strategies in Western Balkan countries jointly with EU strategies have to cover, at least, the following in the coming 30 years: total greenhouse emission reduction, even elimination, to extend feasible socio-economic effects of the decarburization measures, to enable links to other national long-term objectives, to make progress on a low greenhouse gas emission economy by encouraging the use of renewable energy sources to approach the European green plan. All those measures will lead the energy sector in the Western Balkans (WB6) to be organized to function with diversified sources of energy, secure fully functional integrated energy market, the free flow of energy, improve efficiency by reducing needs for energy imports; move to low carbon economy by promoting research and innovations in low carbon and clean energy technologies, which will all lead to extensive implantation of renewable energy sources and control of climate change in the region.

West Balkan Mineral Register of Primary Raw Materials

Rational and long-term planning and sustainable mineral resources management is of strategic importance in Europe’s efforts to secure the self-supply of mineral raw materials. European mineral data is organized and accessible within the pan-European Minerals Intelligence Network. Most EU countries are part of this network, while the West Balkan region presents a gap in this regard. A common West Balkan mineral register needs to be established in order to close the gap and bring the area closer to the EU market. Including the region into the network would provide new opportunities to local industry and improve mineral management at the national and regional level. In this context, the Geological Survey of Slovenia is working in cooperation with numerous partners and stakeholders in different projects within the framework of European initiatives and programs. We collected and properly organized relevant data on minerals in the region according to the INSPIRE Directive. This paper describes the creation of the West Balkan Mineral Register of primary raw materials, and its content.

Heralds at the Bells: Messages of Hope from West Balkan Bards During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Between March and May of 2020, a number of guslars (bards) and other traditional singers from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, and Serbia flooded YouTube with songs about the COVID-19 pandemic. Though the musicians chose divergent vantage points from which to approach the topic of the pandemic, all settled on a similar goal. They sought to deliver a message of solidarity and hope to those struggling with the realities of life under lockdown measures and to allay the fears and uncertainties that spread with the virus. This article provides a critical overview of the guslars’ songs to explore their shared and divergent tropes, themes, and tones, and to highlight the goals of their singers in disseminating their messages in traditional form. Here I comment on what the high degree of convergence in the songs’ final messages reveals about vernacular responses to the pandemic and folk views on the measures taken to halt the virus’s spread. Finally, the article places these songs into a wider historical context of contemporary singing to the gusle, remarking on the vagaries of navigating authority when one sings subjective opinion in the name of a collective.

Genocid nad Bošnjacima Srebrenice 1995. godine / Genocide against Srebrenica Bosniaks in 1995

A small town Srebrenica, located in the eastern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina became globally known after the genocide of 8.372 Bosniaks in July 1995. Three months before the Dayton peace agreement was signed, in November of 1995, the Army of Republika Srpska troops led by General Ratko Mladic committed genocide. Other than killing over 8.000 Bosniak men, they persecuted thousands of Srebrenica inhabitants. Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić have been sentenced to life in jail for the crime of genocide committed in Srebrenica. While the international institutions and the European Union recognize this crime and work proactively on remedying its consequences, the Republic of Serbia and Republika Srpska are facing deep social and political negation of the Srebrenica genocide. This denial has been an obstacle for rebuilding the trust between Serbs and Bosniaks in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the West Balkans in general. Meanwhile, Srebrenica and its adjoining villages lack wide and systematic support for the durable return of its displaced inhabitants. There was a failed attempt in 2007 to give the city a special administrative status as a way towards reviving it. This paper will critically analyze the approach of the Bosnian and Herzegovinian, EU, and international institutions as well as that ofneigh-boring countries towards a durable and sustainable return to Srebrenica, its economic and cultural development between 1996. and 2020. This paper argues for giving Srebrenica a special status in order to promote its development supported by a law that would ensure a solidarity fund for its development.

Sustainability of switch on-switch off (SOSO) mining: Human resource development tailored to technological solutions

Adaptable, mobile, modularised technical solutions were piloted for switch on-switch off (SOSO) mining at test sites in the west Balkans. Pre-training occurred at the site of module construction and on the mine site in order to transfer knowledge relating to the rapid deployment, commissioning and operation of mining and processing units, in a mature health and safety culture. Translation of extensive documentation, describing operation of the equipment, into local languages and visual aids supported communication. Consideration of the activities required to deploy and operate prototype solutions revealed how characteristics of a SOSO workforce differed from other types of mining. Deployment of modularised plant employed fewer workers than traditional stick-build of a processing plant, but selective mining and processing of complex and variable deposits limited the potential for automation and required operator control. A workforce with mixed levels of experience was most amenable to development of a mature health and safety culture. The total number of employees was small at an individual site and might remain small, even in a multi-deposit, regional business model. However, employment is higher per unit of production than for conventional large-scale mining. The duration of employment is shorter than for large-scale mining but employment can nevertheless be important where there are few alternative opportunities and where it can increase the skills-base to support a more diversified local economy. SOSO mining constitutes a new relationship between society and the mining industry, which needs further consideration for greater resilience in the local community and increased social sustainability.

Decision Support for Integrated Management of Local-Level Adaptation to Climate Changes: The Case of Serbia

Projected climate changes will additionally increase the already significant risk of natural hazard-related disasters in Serbia and the west Balkan region as a whole. Serbia is about to introduce the strategy for climate change adaptation and mitigation. However, a national decision-support system for implementation of the climate change law and strategy is yet to be developed. This study contributes to the implementation of adaptation policies at subnational levels by development of a decision-support model for local-level management of the climate change adaptation process. The study explores the potential for synergetic application of multicriteria decision making analysis and probabilistic reasoning methods by focusing on Bayesian networks, analytical hierarchy processes, and geographic information systems for selection of priority adaptation measures. The study was based on the formation of causal chains, which enable linking management decisions and socioeconomic or biophysical consequences into articulated sequences of conditional relationships. A model was tested in the forestry sector, and it clearly pointed out development of an early warning system and planning of water intake basins as priority adaptation measures. Since the results are shown as a probability distribution for each alternative solutions, the model can assist decision makers with prompt evaluation of various scenarios.

Agroecology in the West Balkans: pathway of development and future perspectives

ABSTRACT Based on available literature, practices, and agricultural movements, this study analyzed the conceptualization of agroecology in the West Balkans (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and North Macedonia). For decades, like Yugoslavia, they shared common agricultural development, and agroecology was viewed on a theoretical basis alone. Currently, cooperation exists between agroecology (scientific discipline) and organic agriculture (practical platform). All countries have committed to transition toward sustainable agriculture; however, lower productivity and economical/structural impediments have resulted in variable acceptance of agroecology. Nevertheless, agroecology is recognized as an alternative approach to conventional agriculture, with the potential to meet future food demands.

Mitogenome evolution in the Lacerta viridis complex (Lacertidae, Squamata) reveals phylogeny of diverging clades

In order to elucidate mitochondrial evolution and resolve the phylogeny of the widely distributed European green lizards (Lacerta viridis complex), we determined 16 mitochondrial genomes from a representative sampling of the four previously identified major clades corresponding to L. bilineata (western distribution range), L. viridis (most of the eastern distribution range), the unnamed Adriatic (or West Balkan) and the Turkish + south-eastern European clades. The mitogenomes were on average 17,162 bp long with a canonical vertebrate gene inventory of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes and a long non-coding Control Region. We detected several almost completely clade-specific insert and tandem-repeat signatures. Phylogenetic analyses using all 13 protein-coding genes as well as rRNA- and tRNA-coding sequences from a total of 20 mitogenomes inferred a resolved branching pattern of the four divergent clades. The Turkish clade is strongly supported as sister to all other members of the complex. Within the monophylum comprising the remaining clades, L viridis is sister to a clade containing L. bilineata and the Adriatic clade. Unexpectedly, one specimen of western Italy (Calambrone, Pisa) – which is within the distribution range of L. bilineata – clustered together with the Adriatic clade with high bootstrap support, calling for further research on the biogeography of the L. viridis complex. Integrating our results with those of previous studies suggest that the lineages have reached the level of distinct taxa, but to determine whether they have become fully independent lineages on the species level requires further research that tackles nuclear genomic variation of all four clades and the viability of hybrids and gene flow within putative hybrid zones.

Key Challenges in the Status Analysis for the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan in Podgorica, Montenegro

The paper presents the results of the application of a practical approach for collecting data, which provides a simple, cost efficient, and easily reproducible method that was applied to obtain the necessary data for the status analysis of the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) for Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro. Important data for the estimation of the existing condition of the traffic system were collected through desk research from the appropriate institutions and organizations. Several surveys and focus group interviews were conducted, in which about 5000 residents of Podgorica participated. In addition to answering questions, residents made numerous suggestions, confirming the correctness of a participatory approach in the new traffic planning paradigm that provides the SUMP with crucial advantages. A manual cordon count of traffic on five bridges for the traffic of the motor vehicles, as well as on two pedestrian-only bridges, was performed by students from the study program Road Traffic, and there are plans to repeat this in the coming years in order to enable more reliable monitoring and evaluation of the obtained data. Contemporary quality management tools such as BYPAD and ParkPAD were also used to assess the status of cycling and parking policy, respectively. It is especially important to emphasize that Podgorica is the first city in the West Balkans, and the fourth city in Europe, in which the ParkPAD tool was applied. A wide range of negative phenomena and trends was identified, like a rapid increase in the number of registered vehicles, an increase in the motorization rate and the number of traffic accidents, increased non-compliance with traffic rules, excessive use of passenger cars and auto-taxi vehicles, insufficient use of unattractive public transport, walking and cycling, etc. Based on the data collected, key challenges in status analysis in Podgorica were identified, which the SUMP should try to overcome.

Seasonal fluctuations of the serum basal biochemical profile in spawning and postspawning West Balkan trout (Salmo farioides, Salmonidae): Implications for fish biology and aquaculture

ABSTRACT Endangerment of fish habitats worldwide is a global problem. Breeding fish in restocking hatcheries is important for bioconservation of many fishes. Analysis of biochemical and hematological parameters provides important information on spawning performance and fish health. Variations of different serum biochemical constituents and increase in body length and mass of West Balkan trout were analyzed during spawning and postspawning. High body weight deviations of males were found in both periods. The body length and weight of males is higher compared to females. After spawning, higher growth was observed in males. Biochemical values are higher in females in relation to males. Low values of glucose, chloride, and potassium are present in the spawning phase. Decreases in protein, triglycerides, cholesterol, AST, sodium, and calcium levels were found in postspawning. Serum biochemical constituents of females vary significantly compared to males. Serum markers indicate a strong association with metabolic processes, which allows for better nutritional control and management of environmental factors, especially the presence of organic particles in the broodstock.