Makedonien|Mazedonien News

The World Bank Executive Directors approved the First Programmatic Competitiveness Development Policy Loan (DPL) in the amount of US$50 million for Macedonia. The project supports the Government’s program aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of the economy by providing incentives for productive investment and technological upgrading in the manufacturing, agribusiness, and trade logistics sector, and establishing enabling conditions to progressively increase labor market flexibility and skills development, World Bank Office to Macedonia said in a press release. The Competitiveness Development Policy Loan is the first in a series of two programmatic operations that will support reforms to strengthen the competitiveness of Macedonia’s economy, said John Gabriel Goddard, leader of the World Bank’s project team. The supported actions aim to develop high value-added manufacturing, facilitate the restructuring of agribusiness, and improve the efficiency of trade logistic ...

Ohrid University for Information Science and Technology ‘St. Paul The Apostle’ and Oakland University signed Tuesday in Rochester a memo of cooperation within the visit of Macedonian Government’s delegation, led by Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, to the US. “Singing of this memo presents an additional contribution to bolstering Macedonia-US cooperation in the sphere of education,” the Government Information Service said in a press release. Macedonia’s Ambassador to the US Zoran Joleski signed the memo on behalf of the Ohrid University. Today, the government’s delegation will present the opportunities for doing business in Macedonia in Detroit. The Macedonian delegation also includes Vice Premier for Economic Affairs Vladimir Pesevski, Minister for Foreign Investments Vele Samak, Director of the Agency for Foreign Investments and Export Promotion Visar Fida, as well as Director of the Technological-Industrial Developments Zones Viktor Mizo, the press release reads.

Republic of Macedonia and the People's Republic of China will sign Tuesday an agreement for economic and technical cooperation in the infrastructure sector. Minister of Transport and Communications Mile Janakieski and China's Ambassador to Macedonia, Cui Zhiwei are set to sign the agreement.

Party of the Macedonians in Albania, Macedonian Alliance for European Integration (MAEI) severely condemned attack with eggs and plastic bottle at the car of Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski and burning the Macedonian flags in Tirana downtown after Gruevski's visit to Albania. - Macedonians in Albania consider that such uncivilised act is not in favour to friendly relations between Macedonia and Albania, especially because this act happened during official visit of PM Gruevski to Albania, at which two countries confirmed good neighbourly relations, mutual confidence and friendship, reads the reaction by MAEI. The reaction also reads that such unseen vandalism is directed also against Macedonians in Albania, who are its loyal citizens, contribute to development of the country as its own country and promote tolerance and coexistence. - Macedonians in Albania expect authorities of this country to undertake urgent measures for finding and punishing the perpetrators and the...

Nach dem Staatsbesuchs des Premierministers Mazedoniens Gruevski in Tirana, verbrannten unbekannte makedonische Flaggen die sie zuvor von den Vorrichtungen entwendeten. Dabei filmten sie die ganze Aktion.

Albanische Radikale haben die fahrende Delegation Gruevskis beim Besuch in der albanischen Hauptstadt Tirana mit Eiern beworfen.

The phrases 'south Balkan nation' and 'ease of doing business' are mutually exclusive in the minds of many western business leaders. But in case you hadn't noticed, Macedonia, the most southerly of the former Yugoslavia successor states, came in at number 23 in the latest World Bank Doing Business rankings, reads the Financial Times article: Macedonia: doing business? - published on blogs.ft.com. Unsurprisingly, it was something Nikola Gruevski, Macedonia's prime minister, was keen to emphasise during an official visit Budapest. "Macedonia in 2006 was in the 96th position in the world, according to the World Bank’s annual 'ease of doing business' rankings. Now Macedonia is in 23rd position, in front of 20 European Union members, and all countries in central and eastern Europe," he told the audience of EuCham – European Chamber members in the Hungarian capital on November 13. In truth, that ignores Estonia's achievement – rank...

"Saharayan Makeeduniya" is a project which will be realised in Macedonia by the Indian company "Sahara India Pariwar". A proposal for the investment was submitted to Macedonia's PM Nikola Gruevski and Vice PM Zoran Stavreski on Nov. 20. "It's our proud privilege that after a few months of brainstorming we have put the vision of our chairman Subrata Roy Sahara for a world class destination in the City of Ohrid in Macedonia together and are presenting it to the Macedonia's Premier and the ministers of his government. The project is christened as 'Saharayan Makeeduniya' and is developed across 240 hectares around the Lake Ohrid, consisting of world class hotels, casinos, residential and recreational facilities and an international standard gold golf course," reads a written statement by Subrata Roy's son, Seemanto Roy - executive director and head of the company's international business department.

Die Ruchti AG im Gwatt geht neue Wege: Vor einem Jahr wurde die Produktion von Fenstern nach Mazedonien verlagert. Die Bilanz nach einem Jahr: Die Produktion läuft auf vollen Touren. Blick in die neue Fabrikationshalle der Ruchti AG in Mazedonien: Geschäftsführerin Sebajet Toska bespricht mit Abteilungsleiter Dejan Boskovski einen neuen Bestellungseingang.  Bild: zvg Skopje ist für den Thuner Unternehmer Daniel Ruchti schon fast zur zweiten Heimat geworden. «Dieses Jahr war ich schon et-wa 25-mal dort», erzählt Ruchti. Die Hauptstadt Mazedoniens (500'000 Einwohner) liegt zwei Flugstunden oder 1700 Autobahnkilometer von der Schweiz entfernt. «Während der Aufbauphase unserer neuen Firma musste ich manchmal auch kurzfristig für einen Tag dorthin fliegen», erinnert sich Ruchti. Ende 2011 war der Rohbau der neuen Firma so weit fertig, dass die Produktionsmaschinen aus dem Betrieb im Gwatt nach Mazedonien gezügelt werden konnten. Mitte Februar begann die Produktion der...

Dear SKYPE representatives, I am a Macedonian. My country's name is Republic of Macedonia . It is a basic human right to choose a name for yourself and to express your nationality . Please SKYPE respect that, and call me by my name. Say: Macedonia! How is it possible in the 21st century for someone else to decide who I am, or who I am not? Does the "universal human right to self determination" as declared by the United Nations not apply to me? Am I excluded from this declaration? How does one become what or who he or she is? Is it the government that decides? The priest, the church, the United Nations...? Who has the power to decide ethnically and nationally who I am, what language I can speak, what songs I can sing, what dances I can dance...? And if anyone has that right who has given it to him or her? !!!!!!PETITION LINK !!!!

Macedonia's Economic Chamber and the Macedonian-Russian Chamber of Commerce organise Monday a Macedonian-Russian business forum in an effort bilateral business contacts to be established with Russian companies from several sectors including agriculture, trade, import of goods, food industry, etc. Businessmen from the Russian region of Tambov are paying a visit to Macedonia to establish business contacts with Macedonian companies. The Tambov region is a federal subject in Russia, located some 460 kilometers south of the capital. Its administrative center is the city of Tambov. 1,091,994 inhabitants live there according to the 2010 Census.

President Gjorge Ivanov pays November 16-17 a visit to Vienna, taking part at congress "90 Years Pan-Europa", organized by the International Paneuropean Union. President Ivanov is set to address the congress official opening, but will also meet with Austrian President Heinz Fischer, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, and International Paneuropean Union President Alain Terrenoire. The International Paneuropean Union is the oldest European unification movement. It began with the publishing of Count Richard Nikolaus von Coudenhove-Kalergi's manifesto Paneuropa, which presented the idea of a unified European State. Coudenhove-Kalergi was the organisation's central figure and President until his 1972 death. 

Cooperation between Czech Republic and Macedonia should develop in the fields of energy, traffic infrastructure and green technologies, the Czech Government says in a press release following the meeting of countries' PM Necas and Gruevski in Prague. Czech firms are experienced and interested in operating at the Macedonia's market in removing environmental damages, construction of waste water and drinking water filtering stations, waste liquidation and other technological environmental components.

Die Päckchenpacker 700 Pakete – das ist ihr Ziel. In den vergangenen Jahren hat es die Neuruppiner Adventgemeinde immer erreicht. Ingelore Apelt ist zuversichtlich, dass es auch in diesem Jahr klappt. Aus dem Kopf kann sie schon gar nicht mehr aufzählen, welche Schulen sich an der Paketaktion „Kinder helfen Kindern“ beteiligen wollen – so viele sind es. Auch die Kindergärten in der Region haben sich wieder gemeldet, „von Wildberg bis Kränzlin“. Gestern startete die Neuruppiner Adventgemeinde offiziell das Weihnachtspäckchenprojekt. Zum 13. Mal beteiligt sich die Freikirche damit an der bundesweiten Aktion, die von der deutschen Vertretung der internationalen Hilfsorganisation Adra betreut wird. Die Kirche der Neuruppiner Adventisten in der Wallstraße ist eine von drei Sammelstellen in Berlin und Brandenburg. In diesem Jahr gehen die Pakete aus Brandenburg an Familien in Mazedonien, die ohne diese Spenden zu Weihnachten leer ausgehen würden. Für viele Kinder ist es sogar das ...

The EU Council of Ministers must follow the European Commission recommendation and immediately determine a date for start of accession negotiations over Macedonia's Union membership, says Romanian Member of European Parliament (MEP) Monica Macovei in light of the December Council summit. "My position with regards to the start of Macedonia's accession talks has always been clear. Macedonia has demonstrated and is still demonstrating it deserves to be in the EU", Macovei told MIA's correspondent in Brussels. Pertaining to the possibility of new obstacles by certain EU member-sates and another delay in the accession talks, the former justice minister who was responsible for the reforms that brought Romania in to the EU, stresses that the Council must follow the EC recommendation and agree with the Macedonian authorities over the start of the negotiations. "It is unacceptable to put a veto on the start of accession negotiations while the Commission h...

In der Kontroverse über die Aufnahme von EU-Beitrittsverhandlungen mit Mazedonien zeichnet sich eine Lösung ab. Erweiterungskommissar Fühle sagte der Nachrichtenagentur Reuters, es gebe erstmals positive Zeichen aus Athen und Skopje im Namensstreit. Er hoffe, dass die EU-Staaten der Empfehlung der Kommission folgen und Beitrittsverhandlungen eröffnen. Wie die Agentur weiter berichtet, könnte eine Vorentscheidung bereits auf dem EU-Gipfeltreffen im Dezember fallen. Bisher blockiert Griechenland die Verhandlungen und begründet dies mit dem Namen Mazedonien. Daraus lasse sich ein Anspruch auf die griechische Provinz Makedonien herleiten, argumentiert die Athener Regierung. QUELLE

From a moderate recession to an investment driven recovery. That is how the European Commission views Macedonia's economy in its autumn economic forecast for this and next two years. Following the GDP contraction for 0.9% in 2009, and its growth for 2.8 and 2.9% in 2010 and 2011 respectively, the EC predicts that this year Macedonia will register a growth of 0.8 percent. In the second half of 2012, economic activity is expected to return to positive growth rates, partly benefitting from a base effect but also due to the positive effects of recent foreign investments. This could bring annual growth into positive territory, although still below 1%. In 2013 and 2014, stronger investment and private consumption, should help to reach slightly higher growth rates, the EC report reads. According to the Commission's autumn forecast released on Wednesday, real GDP is set to contract by 0.3% in the EU and 0.4% in the euro area this year. In the first half of 2013, growth i...

A new investigation over the plane crash, in which President Boris Trajkovski was killed, opens in Bosnia-Herzegovina, based on fresh evidence that cast new light on the reasons for the "King Air" accident. The news, reported by Alfa TV, has been confirmed by Omer Kulic, head of the commission for investigation of aviation accidents within the BiH Ministry of Transport and Communications. The Macedonian Ministry of Transport and Communications and the Ministry of Interior have not yet received an information over the investigation's re-opening, adding that competent ministers Janakieski and Jankuloska had asked their Bosnian counterparts to launch a new investigation, taking into account the new evidence. According to announcements by Bosnian authorities, the decision over the investigation's reopening would be forwarded to Macedonia in the coming days. In Macedonia, attorney Ignjat Panchevski has caused shock waves after claiming he has audio a...