Skopje, 8 March 2026 (MIA) - Prime Minister and VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski said that his fight is for a better life and higher living standards for Macedonian citizens, emphasizing that 17 investment projects worth €650,000 are underway, expected to create 5,000 new jobs. He noted that this is the difference between the government and the opposition.

“The investments that have either started, are being implemented, or are in the phase of negotiating state aid, as part of the Technological Industrial Development Zones portfolio, amount to around €650 million. These are 17 investments expected to create up to 5,000 new jobs. That is my fight. That is the difference between us and them. While they lie, spread panic, and try to exploit people’s feelings and play on emotions, we work and strive as much as possible to improve life for our fellow citizens,” Mickoski said at Sunday’s press conference.

He also noted that Macedonia finished 2025 with real growth of 3.5 percent, and according to data published by Eurostat, it ranks among the top five in Europe, just behind Ireland, Malta, Cyprus and Poland, and ahead of all other economies in the region.

“For example, our northern neighbor has around two percent real growth, while ours is three and a half percent—seventy-five percent higher. The nominal growth of the Macedonian economy is over eight percent, 8.2 percent, which represents a historically high growth,” Mickoski said.

He added that this reflects the continuity of real growth from 2025, when the country recorded three percent growth.

“For the coming year, we expect a budget deficit of less than 3.5 percent and real economic growth of around four percent. That is the difference between this government and the government previously led by SDSM,” Mickoski said.

He noted that in the 28 quarters of SDSM-DUI rule, real growth in the country was a modest two percent.

“In their first six quarters in office, actually, even saying ‘appointment’ is accurate, given the political engineering in 2017, they recorded two percent growth. In the first six quarters of this government, average growth is 3.5 percent, almost twice as high. These are the numbers. This is the difference this government makes, and it is very different from the SDSM and DUI governments. That is the difference between us and them,” Mickoski said.

He pointed out that while they lie, create panic, and attempt to manipulate people’s emotions, the government is working hard to make life better for Macedonian citizens.

Photo: MIA