In Kosovo, a new app makes reporting problems to the government fast and easy

This interview is part of a series of spotlights on the work of some of the grantees of the Digital Spark granting scheme, as part of the Regional Support Mechanism EECA project, implemented by the Metamorphosis Foundation and TechSoup, in partnership with CIVICUS and under the Digital Democracy Initiative (DDI) that covers the Global South. It is being published on Global Voices as part of a content-sharing agreement.

One of the biggest barriers for people’s effective engagement with the authorities in Kosovo is a confusing and unresponsive bureaucracy. Whenever citizens want to report a problem in their community, such as potholes or illegal waste disposal, they are met with a system that requires them to know the roles and responsibilities of various state institutions and handle necessary paperwork themselves.

When submitted to the wrong agency or without proper documents, citizens’ complaints are either ignored or can take long periods to be processed, which discourages engagement and has an adverse effect on people’s trust in the government. Ultimately, it deteriorates the already challenging situation regarding transparency, communication, and accountability of state bodies in Kosovo.

In 2026, a local non-governmental organization (NGO), Sbunker, responded to this challenge by creating an online platform called Kosovo.report to help citizens report their complaints to the authorities in a quick and easy manner. Global Voices conducted an email interview with Hana Deva, project manager at SBunker, to learn more about their initiative. The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Global Voices (GV): Please tell us about your organization and why you chose to get involved with the Digital Sparks project.

GV: What issue/challenge in your community prompted you to undertake this project?

GV: What are the key changes/activities that your organization implemented during your participation in the project?

GV: How did your participation in the project impact your organization’s beneficiaries and the community that you serve? Please provide examples.

GV: How has your own knowledge, awareness, and experience with digital democracy and civic space changed, thanks to your participation in the project?

GV: What are the most valuable lessons and experiences you are taking away from this project?

GV: What comes next? How will you apply the learning and digital capacity you have built in your future work and within your community?