Council of EU adopts 100M euro assistance to North Macedonia
The European Union will provide 100 million euro macro-financial assistance to North Macedonia, a statement by the Council of the EU said on July 10.
“The assistance will contribute to supporting North Macedonia’s economic stabilisation and substantive reform agenda,” the statement said.
The entire amount of the assistance shall be provided in the form of loans.
“The assistance will contribute to strengthening North Macedonia’s resilience in a challenging economic context,” the Council of the EU said.
The statement said that the economy of North Macedonia had been significantly affected by the recession caused by the Covid19 pandemic and by the recent energy crisis, driven by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and North Macedonia’s high dependency on imports of fuel and electricity.
These circumstances have contributed to the country’s sizeable financing gap.
The macro-financial assistance accompanies a 24-month support programme concluded with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), of up to 530 million euro.
It will contribute to covering North Macedonia’s financing needs in 2023 and 2024 as identified in the IMF programme.
The macro-financial assistance will be made available in two equal instalments.
A precondition for granting the macro-financial assistance is that North Macedonia respect effective democratic mechanisms, including a multi-party parliamentary system, and the rule of law, and guarantee respect for human rights.
The statement said that the European Commission will agree with the authorities of North Macedonia on clearly defined economic policy and financial conditions, focusing on structural reforms and sound public finances, to which the macro-financial assistance is to be subject.
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