Skopje, 26 October 2022 (MIA) – The Employment Service Agency promoted Wednesday its “Supporting Job Creation Through Green Investments” measure as part of its 2022 Operational Plan for Active Programs and Measures, the measure which concerns the creation of new jobs in the area of green investments is being implemented in cooperation with the UNDP. Interested employers can apply until Oct 31, 2022. As part of the measure businesses will receive financial support of  Mden 205.000-615.000 for new jobs, the funds are in the shape of a grant intended to finance new business investments focused on transitioning towards a green economy. The measure aims to encourage the creation of new jobs and at the same time catalyze the process of green transformation in the private sector through the introduction of green products, services, technologies and processes. At the promotion of the measure, Minister of Labor and Social Policy Jovanka Trenchevska, expressed her satisfaction that the budget aimed at supporting the active programs and measures of the Operational Plan is constantly increasing. “The measure also provides support for vocational training of green skills for the businesses which receive the grant and all other businesses interested in spurring their development through green investments. Additionally, the support for vocational training of green skills will also be made available to unemployed persons in order to facilitate their transition to employment in areas which require green skills. The level realization of the measures of the 2022 Operational Plan has reached 75 percent this year,” said Trenchevska. According to the Director of the Employment Service Agency, Bekim Murati, the goal of the measure is to encourage the creation of new jobs in the process of green transformation of the private sector. “Green jobs contribute to the protection of the environment, lowering of pollution and tackling climate change, while at the same time ensuring social equality and inclusivity,” said Murati. He underscored that according to relevant reports, a few thousand green jobs are expected to be created in the country by 2035, most of which will be in the area of construction and industries related to construction materials. The UNDP Deputy Resident Representative to the country, Sanja Bojanic, emphasized that in the context of post-pandemic recovery and dealing with the war which has led to an energy crisis, the need for an overall food supply chain is becoming more and more evident, and with it also the need for a green sustainable recovery and a green financing strategy, green finance instruments, mechanisms and measures. “The focus is often placed only on the expenses, and of course the green transition requires changes and investments. There will be both winners and losers at the beginning of the transition, but in the long-term this will benefit both the businesses and the citizens, as well as our children. Specifically, when it comes to North Macedonia the change to a circular economy will result in the creation of eight thousand new green jobs, thus also generating 47 million euro for the economy until 2030,” said Bojanic. ad/nn/