The Regional Cooperation Council which met yesterday at the Western Balkans Digital Summit, said they expect Western Balkan countries to abolish roaming charges for mobile and internet users in the region by July 2021.
Secretary-General Majlinda Bregu said that while roaming charges had decreased, she hopes for zero by the middle of next year.
“We now pay between 83% and 96% less roaming charges in the entire Western Balkans. The next step is zero roaming costs for the entire region as of July 2021”
She added that the mid-term goal is to reduce charges for calls between the Western Balkans and the European Union.
In April 2019, countries in the region signed an agreed to abolish roaming charges by next year. A transition period started on 1 July 2019 and fees between Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, and North Macedonia were reduced by 27%. Albania had reductions of 85%.
The RCC said that another topic on the agenda is to drive regional cooperation regarding the 5G network.
The Third WB DS has been organized by the Government of Albania, with the assistance of the Regional Cooperation Council and the European Union. More info on the Summit
