The European Parliament has approved up to €100 million in Macro-financial Assistance (MFA) to North Macedonia to help cover part of its funding needs in 2023.
The decision is made as concerns mount about nations at Europe’s periphery – especially Moldova, North Macedonia, Albania and Serbia, are liable to become political victims of Russian and Chinese Joint ventures.
The aid will be disbursed in two tranches, contingent upon progress made in implementing policy measures agreed upon in a Memorandum of Understanding between the EU and North Macedonia. The aid is expected to focus on areas such as fiscal governance, tax policy, public investment management, public-private partnerships, business environment improvement, transparency in state aid, energy efficiency, judiciary reform, and fighting against corruption. The assistance is subject to North Macedonia maintaining satisfactory performance in the implementation of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) program. North Macedonia, an EU candidate country, requested an MFA in 2022 due to the impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine and its large external debt repayment needs. The aid is part of the EU’s wider engagement with neighbouring and enlargement partners and demonstrates the EU’s solidarity with these partners and the support of effective policies during an unprecedented crisis.
