Following public reports that the Governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo, Ahmet Ismaili, has increased his salary from 4300 to 4792 euros, the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo (CBK) has issued an official response, denying that this is a personal increase in the Governor's salary and emphasizing that any adjustment has been made institutionally and in accordance with the law.
In a response sent to Lajmi.net, the CBK emphasizes that this change "does not represent a salary increase, but in fact partially compensates for the purchasing power of the same salary at the time it was set (2014)."
According to the institution, the Governor's salary is part of a general compensation scheme that has been approved by the CBK Board and is built "according to international methodology and practices for central banks, agreed with the IMF."
"The CBK salary and compensation model is based on the CBK Law and aims to enable the recruitment and retention of qualified experts and officials," the official response states.
The CBK clarifies that the Governor had no role in the decision-making process for adjusting his salary, and was not even part of the discussions at the CBK Board when the issue was addressed.
"There is no individual approval from the Governor on this issue, and the Governor did not even participate in the discussions of the CBK Board when they addressed the need for prior adjustment/correction of the Governor's salary level."
According to the explanations, the indexation was done for all CBK staff in a linear manner and is part of a sustainable, meritorious and fair salary model that supports the implementation of the Central Bank's mandate.
"The indexation/correction has been linear and has been applied to all staff on the same basic salary according to positions, based on the methodology agreed with the IMF."
The CBK has also clarified that as an independent constitutional institution, it is not a budgetary organization and is not regulated by public administration laws.
“The CBK has budgetary independence and sustainability and is not a budgetary organization financed from the state budget. This is typical for the absolute majority of central banks, including those in the EU and the region.”
Regarding the figures mentioned in the reports, the CBK says that "the highlighted salary figures are not accurate" and emphasizes that full transparency in this regard is ensured through the publication of the Annual Report, where all compensation is detailed.
“Full disclosures of salaries/compensations are made within the framework of the Annual Report and declared to the relevant authorities on an annual basis.”
Finally, the CBK ensures that all its decision-making is in accordance with the Law on the CBK and international governance standards, respecting IMF recommendations.
"The CBK remains fully focused on implementing its mandate, while ensuring that governance and all internal acts are in accordance with the CBK law and the internal legal framework, fully respecting the principles of governance according to the highest international standards."
