Your Excellency Chief State Prosecutor Mr. Aleksander Lumezi,

Your Excellency Acting President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani,

Your Excellency, Ambassador of the United States of America to Kosovo, Philip Kosnett,

Your Excellency Ambassador, Head of the European Union Office in Kosovo/EU Special Representative  Mr. Tomáš SZUNYOG,

Your Excellency, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Kosovo, Carin Lobbezoo,

Your Excellency the incumbent Minister of Justice, Selim Selimi

It is a great pleasure for me to speak at this Annual Conference of Prosecutors.

Switzerland is supporting the Office of the Chief State Prosecutor since 2016.

We started however supporting anti-corruption efforts via the UNDP-led SAEK project in 2012 already.

Our support has always been driven by three key convictions:

 First, the protection and advancement of the rule of law in Kosovo requires strong, professional and independent institutions.

Second, corruption impedes development, negatively affects the labor market and skews wealth in favor of a few

Third, everybody in Kosovo has to follow the law, no one is above the law.

Switzerland had systematically endeavored to empower citizens and improve access to information. Since last year, we also started focusing on the confiscation and recovery of stolen assets, and ultimately their return to whom they belong – the citizens of Kosovo.

Switzerland trusts that the recent signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Chief State Prosecutor Mr Lumezi and the Basel Institute on Governance will help improve Kosovo’s investigatory capacities. At the same time, the ability to confiscate stolen assets as well as to punish the criminals will be increased.

 Switzerland is also pleased to support the establishment of a new electronic platform that will allow automatic identification of discrepancies between one’s income and assets. This platform will be used to support investigations related to organized crime, money laundering and to confiscate illegally acquired property.

 I would like to commend Mr. Lumezi for this initiative and his leadership in this endeavor.

 Switzerland remains committed to support the prosecution of criminal acts in Kosovo and looks forward to strengthen the cooperation.