The air quality in Kosovo is far away from European standards and exceeding the allowed rates. Among the biggest polluters in Kosovo are considered the power plants of the Kosovo Energy Corporation, but also the old cars and coal used for heating during the winter, Koha Ditore reports. The risk from the polluted air had alerted the World Bank, who, through a survey conducted earlier in the year, said that within one year there are 800 premature deaths in Kosovo due to air pollution.

Kosovo today marks European Immunization Week, organized by the Ministry of Health, UNICEF Kosovo and World Health Organization (WHO). The Ministry of Health, through a press release, stated that the European Immunization Week in Kosovo aims, through organized activities, to raise awareness about immunization and improve the health status of children in Kosovo.

Air pollution is estimated to be the lead cause of 800 premature deaths annually in Kosovo, said World Health Organisation representatives. Head of WHO for Kosovo, Skender Syla said that Kosovo has many environmental concerns such as air, water, or land pollution and the Government of Kosovo needs to undertake measures to significantly improve environmental conditions. Ilir Morina from the Kosovo Environment Protection Agency said that there has been improvement in air quality in Kosovo compared to the situation in previous years.

Kosovo is ranked among the countries with low rates of HIV / AIDS, while the health education, the development of diagnostic capacities and the use of antiretroviral therapy have increased the possibilities to deal with this disease.  This was said on Tuesday in Prishtina, in a round-table dedicated to 1 December – World AIDS Day, organized by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the National Institute of Public Health and the WHO Office in Pristina.

The number of perinatal deaths has decreased in Kosovo and no cases of maternal deaths were recorded during 2014 according to a report presented by the Ministry of Health. The report states that the perinatal death rate in 2014 was 11 percent in contrast to 2000 when it reached 29 percent. Health Minister Imet Rrahmani welcomed the results but said that they have still to establish how many infants are delivered outside Kosovo health institutions and how high are mortalities that occur outside the Kosovo territory.