Macedonia  

Macedonia has a high unemployment rate of 35% and workers have low access to physical capital, ranking the country 70th on the latter variable. The inflation rate, however, is moderate at 4%. With domestic saving rates at a very low 3% of GDP, Macedonia is outperformed by many neighbours in the region. In the banking sector, 9.1% of loans are in default, but an interest margin of 3.8 percentage points indicates a reasonable level of efficiency. Furthermore, levels of household expenditure, at 22% of GDP, indicate a lack of domestic demand. Performance with regard to attracting foreign direct investment is around the international median, with a value equalling 4% of GDP. Macedonia has modest export revenues relative to the cost of imported goods, but a raw material concentration level of 2.3% indicates adequate industrialisation and the capacity to produce high valueadded goods and services rather than primary products.

Barriers to entry are high in Macedonia, with 10 formal procedures required to start a business. Internet infrastructure as measured by secure internet servers is very low, with only two units per million people, ranking Macedonia 71st on this variable. Internet bandwidth is very weak, ranking Macedonia amongst the bottom eight countries worldwide, while access to personal computers is also inadequate, with 265 units per 1,000 people. ICT and high-tech exports are also extremely low, both at only 1% of total goods. Value added in the service industry, however, is average, placing Macedonia just outside the top 50. Macedonia could benefit from increasing R&D expenditure beyond the current value, which stands at 0.4% of its GDP. This would also boost the moderate levels of royalty receipts, which currently rank Macedonia 59th.

Macedonian citizens enjoy average levels of political rights and civil liberties, with Macedonia ranking 57th and 51st, respectively, on these variables. Macedonia receives a high democracy score, which can be attributed to free and open political competition and sound regulation of the political system. The system is characterised by significant checks and balances, preventing arbitrary or unilateral actions by leaders in the executive. Open political competition and well-regulated electoral processes characterise both the executive and legislative arms of the government, while the judiciary remains independent. Despite a well-functioning political system, Macedonia does rank poorly in regards to the stability of the political system, as the last fundamental change occurred less than 10 years ago.

Macedonia has adequate levels of enrolment in primary education, at 92% of the school age population. However, these levels drop considerably going into secondary and tertiary schooling, with values of 84% and 30%, ranking Macedonia 59th and 57th, respectively. The workforce as a whole is quite well educated, with an average of 5.3 years of secondary education per worker. This trend drops slightly for tertiary education, where workers have an average of only four years, placing Macedonia 55th for this variable. There are moderate numbers of teachers, with a ratio of one tutor to every 19 students at primary level, and there is near parity of sexes in both primary and secondary levels of education, with 99 girls enrolled for every 100 boys. Educational spending is nevertheless low, at roughly $1,400 per student in primary and secondary schooling, placing Macedonia 55th in the international rankings on this variable.

Macedonia’s health infrastructure is reasonably well served, with 22 medical practitioners and 47 hospital beds to every 10,000 people; ranking Macedonia 30th, globally. Macedonian citizens have very good access to sanitation facilities and 62% claim satisfaction with the water quality. An infant mortality rate of 1.5% and malnourishment rates of 5% rank Macedonia in the top 50 countries worldwide; furthermore, health-adjusted life expectancies are moderately high, at 63 years. Performance on subjective health variables is about average as 82% of Macedonians report being satisfied with their health, and under a quarter reported having health problems.* These figures are consistent with the 22% who reported having felt pain recently.* Additionally, 67% of the population deem themselves well rested, placing Macedonia 59th on this variable.*

Macedonia has some significant security challenges related to refugees and internally displaced individuals, while group grievances are also a major concern. Although Macedonia did not experience a civil war in 2007, there have been significant instances of state-sponsored political violence against citizens, such as torture or political imprisonment, positioning Macedonia a low 62nd on this variable. These issues have led to considerable human flight amongst the professional and educated populace. Macedonia fares better in matters of safety, with only 7% of respondents reporting theft in 2008, and over six out of 10 feeling safe walking home alone at night.* With 6% of respondents reporting assault and muggings, Macedonia performs roughly average according to this variable.* No data was available on the homicide rate in Macedonia.

Enforcement of the rule of law in Macedonia is poor, ranking the country 65th, globally, on this variable, but regulation of economic and commercial activity is more effective, placing Macedonia 56th on this factor. Citizens are also afforded free and fair participation in the political system. However, the civil service is less effective in carrying out the objectives set by political leaders, ranking Macedonia 65th, internationally. Public opinion of government and local businesses is surprisingly distrustful, with 81% and 92% of respondents believing both to be corrupt.* Similarly, only a third of individuals trust the honesty of elections, and less than a quarter has confidence in the judicial system.* Respondents were slightly less sceptical about the military, with two-thirds of Macedonian citizens expressing confidence, but this remains a below average figure, internationally, ranking Macedonia 65th on this variable.*

Macedonians have relatively high levels of freedom with regard to movement, religious practice, and speech. With regard to freedom of choice in matters of daily life, only 44% of Macedonians are satisfied with their control over their everyday affairs, placing Macedonia very low at 102 out of 104 on this variable.* While four in five Macedonian citizens remain tolerant of racial and ethnic minorities, only 56% feel the same about immigrants, ranking Macedonia 76th on the latter variable.*

Although most Macedonians find friends to be important in their daily lives, they rely very little on family and friends in times of need.* This is in line with the general lack of trust in others which places Macedonia 62nd out of 75 countries. Macedonia also performs weakly with respect to social group membership – ranking the country amongst the bottom six countries with regard to citizens’ memberships of groups. Just 9% claim to be a member of a religious organisation or sports clubs, and only 7% and 3% belong to art and environmental clubs, respectively. Macedonia reports low levels of volunteering or helping strangers, ranking the country 87th and 92nd, respectively.* However, a surprising 38% of respondents claim to have donated to charity in the month before the survey, which places Macedonia 34th according to this variable.*

* Data taken from the Gallup World Poll

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