First meeting of the Monitoring Committee for the Reform and Growth Instrument for the Western Balkans

Skopje – The Minister for European Affairs, Orhan Murtezani, in his capacity as national coordinator, co-chaired this morning the First Meeting of the Monitoring Committee for the Reform and Growth Instrument for the Western Balkans (RGF), which was held today in a hybrid format at the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia.

As announced by MEP, in his introductory address, Murtezani emphasized the importance of this new platform for strengthening reform processes and institutional cooperation, welcoming representatives from the European Commission, international financial institutions, the civil sector, as well as representatives from national institutions who participated in this meeting.

Minister Murtezani pointed out that the meeting is held immediately after yesterday’s Summit of the Western Balkans leaders in Skopje dedicated to the Growth Plan and the reform agendas of the candidate countries from the region, which once again confirmed the common commitment, both from the region and from the European Commission, for a breakthrough on the Euro-integration path.

Murtezani highlighted that the Growth Plan and the Reform Agenda are designed to bring key socio-economic reforms and to promote democratic values and the rule of law, which are prerequisites for stability, prosperity, and integration into the European Union.

North Macedonia, as Murtezani pointed out, remains fully focused on implementing the Reform Agenda, which covers priority areas such as good governance, public finances, energy and green transition, human capital development, business climate, and the rule of law.

– As a clear indicator of the political maturity and institutional capacity of the country to move towards European standards through substantial reforms, North Macedonia has finalized all legal procedures in record time, enabling the timely withdrawal of 52.5 million euros in pre-financing, emphasized Murtezani.

He further informed that the first procedure for the disbursement of a new tranche of funds amounting to 17 million euros has already been initiated, a significant part of which is intended for capital investments.

The Reform and Growth Instrument for the Western Balkans has been established to support the enlargement process by accelerating alignment with EU law, speeding up regional economic integration, as well as socio-economic convergence with the Union. The Monitoring Committee aims to ensure transparency, accountability, and effective coordination in the implementation of reform processes. (2 July 2025)