Skopje, 11 April 2024 (MIA) – Economic indicators in the country and future measures within SDSM's program with a particular focus on cooperation with the diaspora, digitization, public administration reform, the rule of law and the fight against corruption were in the focus of Thursday's meeting between the leadership of SDSM and representatives of the "Macedonia" 2025" association.

According to SDSM leader Dimitar Kovachevski, the purpose of the meeting was to hear the views and recommendations of economic experts, as the only way towards creating efficient measures and policies for a developed economy. 

"We discussed all topics that are of interest to the economic sphere in the country, and we also discussed future measures in our program that guarantee a sustainable, innovative and competitive economy. SDSM has a clear and concrete plan to invigorate economic growth," Kovachevski said after the meeting, adding that the party will not give up on the idea of ​​a prosperous country and a better standard of living for all citizens.

He noted that EUR 180 million are planned to support domestic companies and 3.5 billion public capital investments to strengthen economic growth and development.

"Minimum wage will stand at EUR 600, and the average wage will be EUR 1,100 by 2028. Pensions will also grow - Mden 20,000 minimum pension and Mden 30,000 average pension. Unemployment will drop from 12 to 7 percent in 2028," said Kovachevski. 

He pointed out that it is important to continue with the European path because the EU also foresees funds for the growth of the Western Balkans.

"We proved that we know what we are doing to have satisfied citizens and, above all, economy. We know the path that the country should take. We are aware that in the past years we made mistakes, and we take responsibility for that, but we did one thing absolutely right – we identified the vision for our country and did not give up on it even in the most difficult times. Macedonia became a NATO member, and we are successfully leading the country towards the EU. With the current and future steps and policies, we are on the right track to achieve the second strategic goal, which is EU membership," Kovachevski said.

Today's presentation of the World Bank report, he noted, showed that the Macedonian economy in 2023 was resilient to all crises, and the economy records positive growth, although it is lower than in 2022. This, he added, is due to the impact of the poor performance of the economies in the EU and the war in Ukraine.

Photo: MIA