REGIONAL BALANCED DEVELOPMENTS IN NORTH MACEDONIA. CHALLENGES, TRENDS AND PERSPECTIVES

Abstract

Regional economic development is considered as an important feature for enriching the economic cohesion policy. Regional development policy for North Macedonia implies a state institutional effort for settling a national priority within the framework of EU’s policy for promoting economic and social cohesion, derived from the Lisbon Strategy, aimed at reducing regional disparities with respect to socio-economic development level in between North Macedonia’s statistical regions. For the purpose of addressing regional disparities and stimulating a sustainable economic development, North Macedonia, adapted a law on balanced regional development in 2007 and went through many subsequent legislative acts in the years to come with the aim of improving the long-lasting deficiency of a sustainable regional development gaps in the country. This policy-oriented paper, based on the regional statistical data of North Macedonia from a retrograde perspective, covering in principle the past twenty years, 2000-2020, analyzes a set of economic development indicators, using a panel level data for the 8 statistical regions in North Macedonia. Based on a econometric assessment of Fixed Effect with Driscoll and Kraay standard errors, using regional fixed effects, the study will try to identify the economic factors which may contribute to reducing the regional economic disparities within the country. The results of the study will provide relevant policy recommendations to the authorities and interested parties for establishing a productive institutional action on identifying the challenges, trends and perspectives in the policy of a balanced regional development.