Skopje, 18 February 2026 (MIA) - Our policy is clear – stable public finance and a protected living standard. We will continue with discipline and responsibility in spending, and sensitivity towards the real problems of the citizens, said Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski in his address Wednesday at an annual conference on formalizing the informal economy.

“We will be firm and just, both to those who are evading their obligations and those who are trying to profit from the crises because our duty is clear – an economy with order, a market with rules, a state with dignity,” Mickoski said.

The Prime Minister noted that the informal economy represents a missed opportunity for higher wages, better hospitals, modern schools, and more secure pensions.

“It creates unfair competition, it undermines trust in the institutions and demotivates everyone who is doing honest work. Our goal is clear – the formal economy must become more attractive than the informal. We must ensure it is easier, more profitable and more secure to work legally,” Mickoski said, noting that the fight against the informal economy must be systemic. 

Finance Minister Gordana Dimitrieska-Kochoska said the revised action plan for 2026-2027 will set a clear and measurable goal for the reduction of the informal economy from 28.9 percent to 26 percent of GDP by the end of 2027.

“In the realization of this goal it is especially important that all relevant institutions are actively involved in the implementation of the strategy and its measures. We are also sending a clear message for cooperation and active inclusion in the implementation through today’s signing of the declaration on partnership and action, with which we are expressing our shared commitment to formalizing the informal economy. It represents a significant step to a systemic and coordinated tackling of the informal economy and with it, we are demonstrating the shared commitment of the institutions, the business community, union organizations, and academia,” Dimitrieska-Kochoska said.

Photo: MIA