Unlocking female economic potential – beyond gender boundaries

The objective of this action is to empower and enable women to reach their full potential in the labor market, with a particular focus on productivity.

Specific objectives include:

  1. To identify drivers of low female participation in the labor market and female productivity, by producing evidence and generating knowledge;
  2. To emphasize the importance of decent jobs, a stimulative environment, working conditions, and systemic support as drivers of productivity and women’s potential, by piloting measures at “Comfy Angel” and in collaboration with the business sector;
  3. To stimulate policy dialogue among relevant stakeholders (policymakers, business sector, Federation of Trade Unions);
  4. To advocate for policies that enable decent jobs and a stimulative environment that will boost female productivity.

Donor: British Embassy in Skopje

Competitiveness Policy Priority Identification in the Western Balkans

The objective of the project is to identify and address policy priorities in each of the six Western Balkan economies, unlocking growth opportunities for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the region. The project is supporting the implementation of the Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans (EIP) for the period 2021 – 2027, aiming to develop and implement a comprehensive program to enhance the competitiveness of the private sector in the region’s countries.

Client: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

State aid and foreign direct investment in the Western Balkan countries: Fostering transparency and generating space for regional coordination of investment policies

The overall objective of the project is to improve transparency of and to generate evidence on the FDI-related state aid in the context of the regional integration of Western Balkan countries.

The overall objective is broken down to the following specific objectives:

  1. To identify (map) state aid programs and key measures and relate it to measurable indicators of effectiveness,
  2. To produce evidence on the state aid granted to foreign companies in view of its effectiveness and of support to the regional integration,
  3. To increase public awareness at regional, national and local level by influencing public discourse on the importance of state aid transparency and alignment with the EU requirements, and as a promotor of regional integration

Donor: Open Society Foundations – Western Balkans

Diagnostics of the informal economy in North Macedonia

The objective of the action is to diagnose the informal economy, re-estimate its size and the size/importance of its various facets, by relying on tax administration data. By so doing, the action will create a roadmap of actions and direction of resources that will produce the maximal result.

Donor: International Labor Organization

Duration: September – December 2023

Open Balkan: Free regional movement of labor in conditions of shortage of qualified workers?

The goal of the project is to assess how the free movement of (skilled) labor in the Open Balkan Initiative will affect the labor market in North Macedonia, and thus to encourage a reasoned debate and adjustment of policies to maximize benefits and minimize risks.

Specific objectives include:

  • Generating knowledge about how the free movement of (skilled) labor included in the Open Balkan Initiative will affect the labor market in the country;
  • Encouraging evidence-based public debate about the benefits and challenges of the issue;
  • Contribution to economic policies related to the labor market and bilateral social security agreements, in the context of the implementation of the requirements of this Initiative.

Donor: Foundation Open Society Macedonia

Duration: September 2022 – September 2023

Action for formalization of micro-performers of economic activity in the informal economy

The purpose of this action is to increase the formalization of micro-companies in North Macedonia, ie performers of economic activity in the informal economy. Hence, the action addresses legal informality. More specific objectives of the action include:

  1. Understand the reasons for the informality of micro-operators in the informal economy (high fees, high administrative burden, low probability of being discovered, poor awareness of the benefits of formalization, etc.)
  2. To understand the activity of informal micro-performers
  3. To design a map / list of all fees, including parafiscal charges, related to starting a micro-business and running it in the early years
  4. To propose: a) a plan for reduction of the costs for firming of micro-performers of activity, including rationalization of the duties identified in 3; and b) policy measures (fiscal, labor, information) that will encourage greater formalization of micro-operators.

Client: GIZ North Macedonia