Since 1999 when UN peacekeepers (KFOR) led by NATO intervened in Kosovo, Kosovo-Albanians, the majority population in Prishtina, started a frantic construction boom. Villagers moving to the city and returning refugees created an enormous population growth and housing shortage. The lack of regulatory institutions combined with the possible quick returns on property investments led to a chaotic and socially undesirable urban fabric.

Archis Interventions/Prishtina was founded in 2005 to mediate between private interest and public institutions in order to intervene in the process of city planning. After the factual situation was analysed, a manual was created to define the different typologies and possible solutions for problems caused by illegal building. On an administrative level, the civil servants and mayor of Prishtina are continuously involved in the legalisation process of informal building and helped with creating new regulation plans. Furthermore a campaign in newspapers and on national television raised public awareness to the problems, and private investors were provided with free advice and support by local experts.