COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 2016 Communication on EU Enlargement Policy
Date: 2016-11-09
Institutions: Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, European Commission
Subjects: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Türkiye, democratisation, enlargement of the Union, regional cooperation

EN 

   EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 9.11.2016  COM(2016) 715 final   COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 2016 Communication on EU Enlargement Policy {SWD(2016) 360 final} {SWD(2016) 361 final} {SWD(2016) 362 final} {SWD(2016) 363 final} {SWD(2016) 364 final} {SWD(2016) 365 final} {SWD(2016) 366 final}  
 
 
I.  

INTRODUCTION  

In  November  2015,  the  European  Commission  set  out  a  medium-term  strategy  for  EU 
enlargement policy to cover the period of the mandate of this Commission. It was endorsed by 
the  Council  in  December  2015.  This  communication  takes  stock  of  progress  in  the 
implementation  of  that  strategy,  draws  conclusions  and  makes  recommendations  as  regards 
specific enlargement countries and on certain thematic issues.  

The  EU  continues  to  face  serious  challenges  on  various  fronts.  Multiple  crises  have 
a destabilising potential not only in Europe, but also globally. The attractiveness of the EU in 
the enlargement countries has been partly affected by the economic downturn and scepticism 
regarding the European project.   

At  the  same  time,  the  firm  prospect  of  EU  membership,  as  continuously  reaffirmed  by  all 
Member  States,  continues  to  drive  transformation  and  anchor  stability  and  security  in  the 
countries of Southeast Europe. Therefore, a credible enlargement process, based on strict and 
fair  conditionality,  remains  an  irreplaceable  tool  to  strengthen  these  countries  and  to  help 
support their modernisation through political and economic reforms, in line with the accession 
criteria.  

Enlargement  policy  continues  to  deliver  results  and  reforms  are  moving  forward  in  most 
countries, albeit at different speeds. Given the complex nature of the necessary reforms, it is a 
long-term process and structural shortcomings persist, notably in the key areas of rule of law 
and the economy.  

In Turkey specifically, the EU-Turkey Summit of 29 November 2015 and the subsequent EU-
Turkey Statement of 18 March 2016 were able to lead to a significant reduction in irregular 
migration flows and, more broadly, to revitalise EU-Turkey relations.  On 15 July, democratic 
institutions and society as a whole were shaken by a violent coup attempt in Turkey, which 
the EU immediately condemned in the strongest terms. 

A  continued  commitment  to  the  principle  of  "fundamentals  first"  remains  essential  for  the 
enlargement  countries.  The  Commission  will  continue  to  focus  efforts  on  the  rule  of  law, 
including  security,  fundamental  rights,  democratic  institutions  and  public  administration 
reform,  as  well  as  on  economic  development  and  competitiveness.  These  remain  the 
fundamentals for meeting  the Copenhagen  and Madrid  membership  criteria.  A stronger  role 
for civil society and stakeholders more broadly remains crucial.  

At the same time, it is important to recognise that accession negotiations are not – and never 
have  been  –  an  end  in  themselves.  They  are  part  of  a  wider  process  of  modernisation  and 
reforms.  The  governments  of  the  enlargement  countries  need  to  embrace  the  necessary 
reforms  more  actively  and  truly  make  this  their  political  agenda  –  not  because  the  EU  is 
asking for it, but  because it is in the best interest  of their citizens.  Public support for future 
enlargements  will  depend  on  the  degree  of  preparedness  of  candidate  countries.  Therefore, 
reforms through the EU accession process also help increase the confidence of citizens of EU 
Member States and of the candidate countries alike. 

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II.  

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 2015 ENLARGEMENT STRATEGY 

a)  

Rule of law 

Overall, there have been efforts to modernise legal frameworks and infrastructure as well as to 
provide better training to judges and prosecutors. In July, Albania's Parliament unanimously 
adopted constitutional amendments which are the basis for a deep and comprehensive judicial 
reform.  Serbia  adopted  comprehensive  action  plans  on  the  rule  of  law,  which  set  the  work 
programme for reforms in chapters 23 and 24.  

However, progress in setting up functioning and independent judicial systems remains slow, 
with  most  countries  continuing  to  face  problems  of  efficiency  and  a  lack  of  sufficient 
independence  and  accountability.  In  Turkey,  the  independence  of  the  judiciary  was 
undermined by extensive changes to the structures and composition of high courts as well as 
continued  pressure  on  judges  and  prosecutors.  The  dismissal  of  one  fifth  of  the  judges  and 
prosecutors  following  the  15  July  coup  attempt  represents  a  further  significant  challenge  to 
the overall functioning of the judiciary. In the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the 
serious shortcomings brought to light by the wiretapping case have still not been adequately 
addressed.  

In recent years, all countries have strengthened their frameworks for tackling corruption and 
organised crime. New institutions – such as the Montenegrin Anti-Corruption Agency – have 
been  established  and  substantial  efforts  were  deployed  to  foster  specialisation,  both  in  the 
police and within the judiciary. Despite these efforts, several countries in the region continue 
to  show  clear  symptoms  and  various  degrees  of  state  capture.  Companies,  institutions  or 
powerful  individuals  use  illegal  practices  to  influence  and  shape  policies,  the  legal 
environment  and  the  economy  to  their  own  interests.  The  declared  political  commitment  to 
fight corruption has not translated sufficiently into concrete results. Efforts therefore need to 
focus more than ever on establishing a convincing and sustained track record in these fields 
based  on  efficient,  effective  and  unbiased  investigations,  prosecutions  and  court  rulings  in 
cases  at  all  levels.  More  transparency  is  needed  in  public  procurement.  Results  in  the  fight 
against organised crime need to go beyond individual cases.  The authorities need to seriously 
start dismantling criminal  networks and confiscating  assets, including  using  more ambitious 
and  powerful  tools  like  extended  confiscation  of  assets  and  systematic  use  of  financial 
investigations. Efforts should be stepped up to address trafficking in firearms. Progress made 
in recent years in addressing trafficking in human beings varies. More efforts are required to 
align with the relevant acquis and to ensure effective implementation of prevention measures 
as well as protection of and assistance to victims. 

Terrorism  and  radicalisation  continue  to  pose  a  security  threat  to  the  EU  and  the 
enlargement  countries.  Turkey  has  been  particularly  affected  by  several  large  scale  deadly 
terrorist  attacks  in  the  past  year.  The  phenomenon  of  fighters  from  both  the  EU  and 
enlargement  countries  travelling  to  join  insurgent  groups  particularly  in  Syria  and  Iraq,  and 
the  security  threat  they  may  pose  when  they  return,  are  also  likely  to  persist  in  the  coming 
years. Enlargement countries have amended their criminal laws and anti-terrorism legislation, 
arming themselves with more robust tools to counter these phenomena. Several of them have 
also adopted new anti-terrorism strategies and action plans, which have moved away from a 
purely  law  enforcement  approach  but  now  also  focus  on  prevention  and  anti-radicalisation. 
However, more needs to be done to counter radicalisation in the countries, in particular in the 
area of education and through better control of foreign funding fostering radical content. The 
EU is extending its anti-radicalisation network (RAN) to enlargement countries to provide the 

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availability  of  good  EU  practices  in  anti-radicalisation.  Enlargement  countries  should 
continue to use Europol as facilitator for cooperation on counter-terrorism.  

b)  

Fundamental rights 

Fundamental  rights  continue  to  be  largely  enshrined  in  the  legislation  of  the  enlargement 
countries.  In  the  Western  Balkans,  shortcomings  in  practice  remain,  but  the  situation  is 
broadly stable. In Turkey, there has been backsliding in this area and practical implementation 
often  shows  significant  shortcomings.  Following  the  attempted  coup  in  July,  a  state  of 
emergency  was  declared  under  which  far-reaching  measures  curtailing  fundamental  rights 
were  taken.  Many  serious  violations  of  the  prohibition  of  torture  and  ill-treatment  and  of 
procedural rights were alleged in the aftermath of the coup attempt. Turkey must ensure the 
effective  functioning  of  an  impartial  system  of  judicial  review  of  alleged  human  right 
violations  in  its  own  interest.  The  Commission  welcomes  the  commitment  by  the  Turkish 
authorities  to  this  end  and  urges  Turkey  to  facilitate  monitoring  of  the  subsequent  trials  by 
international organisations.  

Freedom of expression and media remains a particular concern in most enlargement countries, 
albeit  to  different  degrees.  The  lack  of  progress  in  this  area,  already  observed  over  the  past 
two years, has persisted and, in some cases, intensified. The situation with regard to freedom 
of expression has deteriorated further significantly in Turkey, in particular through arrests and 
prosecution of journalists on terrorism charges and closure of a wide range of media outlets. 
In  the  Western  Balkans,  undue  political  interference  in  the  work  of  public  broadcasters, 
untransparent  public  funding  of  media,  and  intimidation  of  journalists  has  continued.  To 
address  these  issues,  building  on  the  Speak  Up! conferences,  the  Commission  will  launch  a 
new  concept  of  'media  days'  in  the  region,  broadening  the  spectrum  of  media-related  issues 
addressed beyond the freedom of expression as such, also to cover the functioning of media 
markets, competition distortions and related issues such as financing and advertising markets.  

Discrimination  and  hostility  towards  vulnerable  groups,  including  on  grounds  of  sexual 
orientation or gender identity, remains a serious concern. Further work is required to ensure 
equality  between  women  and  men,  including  tackling  domestic  and  gender-based  violence, 
and ensuring equal opportunities for women, notably on the labour market. The rights of the 
child,  including  development  of  child  protection  systems  and  effective  policies  to  support 
persons  with  disabilities  need  to  be  strengthened.  The  difficult  situation  of  Roma  remains 
broadly unchanged and Roma, particularly in the Western Balkans, continue to be the victims 
of discrimination and social exclusion. The policy framework for Roma integration is in place 
in all enlargement countries, but governments need to enhance their efforts to implement the 
existing commitments and allocate the necessary resources at central and local level.  

Effective protection of personal data as well as robust systems to ensure procedural rights are 
still not fully established in many enlargement countries.  

c)   Migration  

The migration crisis has been one of the key issues on the political agenda in the past year. It 
continued to demonstrate the strategic relevance of enlargement policy in the region. The EU 
reacted  in  a  comprehensive  and  rights-sensitive  way.  The  effective  closure  of  the  Western 
Balkans route by the countries concerned together with the EU-Turkey Statement of 18 March 
delivered  clear  results  on  the  ground,  with  the  number  of  irregular  migrants  and  asylum 
seekers reaching the Greek islands dropping significantly, from several thousand a day to less 
than 100 per day on average. This also led to a sharp drop in the number of lives lost at sea. 

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Turkey  has  continued  to  make  great  efforts  to  provide  shelter  to  more  than  2.7  million 
refugees  notably  from  Syria  and  Iraq,  including  by  broadening  the  legislation  on  temporary 
protection and enabling access to the labour market. It also strengthened border management 
and increased patrolling at its land and sea borders. The EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey is 
being  rolled  out  rapidly  and  delivering  tangible  support  to  those  in  need.  The  total  amount 
allocated  under  the  Facility  currently  stands  at  EUR  2.2  billion,  of  which  EUR  1.2  billion 
have  been  contracted  and  of  which  EUR  677  million  have  been  disbursed.  Serbia  and  the 
former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia significantly contributed to the management of the 
migration  flows.  Since  the  summer  of  2015,  these  two  most  affected  Western  Balkan 
countries, have received EU humanitarian assistance as well as additional assistance under the 
Instrument  for  Pre-Accession  to  support  their  positive  and  constructive  efforts  helping 
refugees and migrants on their territory.  

However,  migrants  have  continued  their  attempts  to  reach  destinations  in  Europe.  Some 
enlargement  countries  had  to  adapt  rapidly  both  their  legal  and  institutional  frameworks  as 
well  as  their  infrastructure  to  cope  with  the  migration  crisis.  The  administrative  and 
enforcement  capacity  -  in  particular  when  dealing  with  crisis  situations  -  in  all  countries 
requires further support. Continued actions against migrant smugglers by police and judicial 
actors remains necessary, including through proactive cooperation and information exchange 
with partner countries.  

To  reduce  migratory  pressures  on  the  Union  and  enlargement  countries  alike,  further 
instruments  are  being  deployed.  In  addition  to  the  Facility  for  Refugees  in  Turkey,  the  EU 
Regional  Trust  Fund  in  response  to  the  Syrian  crisis  and  the  compacts  with  Jordan  and 
Lebanon are helping to provide education and employment for Syrian refugees and improve 
their welfare and life chances whilst remaining in the region. Special Support Measures and 
humanitarian assistance have also been deployed for the Western Balkans. 

The  citizens  of  five  enlargement  countries  currently  benefit  from  visa  liberalisation  when 
travelling  to  the  EU.  Turkey  and  Kosovo  made  significant  progress  in  meeting  the 
requirements of their visa liberalisation roadmaps in 2016, which allowed the Commission to 
propose to the Council and the European Parliament the lifting the visa requirement also for 
them once the remaining benchmarks will be met.   

d)  

Functioning of democratic institutions and public administration reform 

The  proper  functioning of  democratic  institutions  remains  a  key  challenge  in  a  number  of 
countries. The central role of national parliaments for the democracy needs to be embedded in 
the political culture. In Turkey, the attempted coup in July was a direct attack on the country's 
democratically  elected  institutions  as  such.  Given  the  seriousness  of  the  threat  against  the 
democratic institutions, a swift reaction to that threat was legitimate. 

Nevertheless, the broad scale and collective nature of measures taken since the coup attempt 
raise  a  number  of  very  serious  questions.  The  earlier  lifting  of  immunity  in  May  of  a  large 
number of members of parliament is also a matter of serious concern. 

In  the  Western  Balkans  the  functioning  of  parliaments  is  often  hampered  by  boycotts. 
Although  some  boycotts  have  been  overcome,  a  divisive  political  culture  remains.  The 
agreement reached in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in July, implementing the 

 This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ 
Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence. 

5 

 
                                                            
Pržino  Agreement  of  last  year,  provides  the  basis  for  the  holding  of  early  parliamentary 
elections  in  December  2016.  Boycotting  and  obstruction  of  parliamentary  activity  by  the 
opposition  has  continued  in  Kosovo,  which  included  incidents  of  violence.  Parliamentary 
scrutiny  is  often  undermined  by  insufficient  government  reporting,  weak  parliamentary 
committee  structures  and  the  excessive  use  of  urgent  parliamentary  procedures.  While  the 
conduct  of  elections  as  such  is  broadly  without  major  incidents,  important  deficiencies, 
including  with  respect  to  election  management  and  political  interference  in  media  reporting 
have  an  impact  on  the  integrity  of  the  overall  pre-electoral  and  electoral  process.  Elections 
often  continue  to  be  seen  as  an  opportunity  to  gain  political  control  of  the  broader 
administration, including independent institutions.   

Progress  on  public  administration  reform  has  been  uneven.  In  Turkey,  the  impact  of  the 
high  number  of  recent  dismissals  on  the  professionalism  and  efficiency  of  the  public 
administration remains to be assessed. Most Western Balkan countries have made progress in 
adopting  public  administration  reform  strategies  and  public  financial  management  reform 
programmes,  but  implementation  and  long-term  sustainability  needs  to  be  ensured.  The 
politicisation  of  the  civil  service  remains  an  issue  of  concern.  Despite  modern  civil  service 
legislation, exceptions are regularly used, especially for appointments and dismissals of senior 
civil servant. The quality of policy-making and legal drafting is not in line with the approach 
of the EU Better Regulation Agenda. Legislation, public policies and major investments are 
often prepared without sufficient impact assessments and internal and public consultations.   

In  most  countries,  the  structure  of  the  state  administration  remains  complex  and  does  not 
ensure sufficient accountability. Citizens' rights to good administration, access to information 
and  administrative  justice  have  to  be  better  ensured.  The  introduction  of  e-government 
services remains a priority as a key factor for transparency, speed, and consistency in public 
services.  Many  countries  have  made  progress  with  adopting  modern  laws  on  general 
administrative procedures, but legal certainty can only be ensured once contradicting special 
administrative  procedures  in  sectoral  laws  are  removed.  Countries  still  need  to  find  an 
appropriate  balance  between  central,  regional  and  local  government  that  best  supports 
implementation of reforms and the delivery of services to citizens.  

e)  

Economy  

The economic situation has gradually improved in the Western Balkans, with stronger growth, 
higher  investment  and  more  jobs  created  by  the  private  sector.  However,  all  enlargement 
countries face major structural economic and social challenges, with low efficiency of public 
administrations  and  high  unemployment  rates.  Youth  unemployment  in  particular  remains 
worryingly high. Infrastructure and education systems need to be improved. The worsening of 
public  debt/GDP  ratios  in  the  region  has  slowed  down  and  could  be  even  stopped  in  some 
countries due to welcome fiscal consolidation. 

A lack of attractive job opportunities domestically is pushing many people to migrate. At the 
same  time,  significant  inflows  of  remittances  from  aboard  create  disincentives  to  seek 
employment within the countries.  

In the context of the EU framework to support economic governance, all candidate countries 
and potential candidates are invited to submit an annual Economic Reform Programme (ERP). 
The ERPs contain medium-term macroeconomic projections and budgetary plans for the next 
three  years,  as  well  as  a  list  of  priority  structural  reform  measures  aiming  at  boosting 
competitiveness  and  inclusive  growth.  The  ERP  process  has  helped  to  focus  governments' 
attention to addressing urgent structural reform needs and to improve coordination. However, 

6 

 
the  tangible  results  of  such  reform  efforts  on  people's  lives  still  need  to  materialise. 
Awareness  of  the  policy  guidance  by  the  relevant  stakeholders  and  commitment  to  their 
implementation needs to be strengthened.  

The EU and Turkey advanced their preparations to negotiate a modernisation and extension of 
the EU-Turkey Customs Union, which has significant untapped potential. The Commission is 
working on a draft negotiating directive to be presented by the end of 2016.  

The investment climate in many countries is negatively affected by the continuing weaknesses 
with  the  rule  of  law  and  signs  of  state  capture,  in  particular  as  regards  independent  and 
efficient  court  systems,  the  uneven  enforcement  of  competition  rules,  weak  public  financial 
management  and  frequent  changes  in  permits  and  taxes,  which  exacerbate  the  risk  of 
corruption. This is particularly problematic for the Western Balkans, given deficiencies in the 
corporate  governance  frameworks,  small  and  fragmented  domestic  markets,  incomplete 
privatisation and limited regional trade integration. In Turkey economic growth strengthened, 
but the business environment continued to deteriorate and the economy remains vulnerable to 
financial  uncertainty,  changes  in  global  investors'  confidence  and  continued  political  risks. 
The deteriorated security situation has led to a marked contraction of the tourism sector.  

Given  the  impact  of  the  rule  of  law  on  economic  governance,  the  Commission  will  pay 
particular attention to the links between these two pillars of the accession process.   

f)  

Regional cooperation  

The  impetus  given  through  the  Western  Balkan  Six  initiative,  notably  regarding  the  EU’s 
connectivity  agenda  and  the  'Berlin  process',  has  continued  to  foster  increased  regional 
cooperation  and  thus  political  stabilisation  and  economic  opportunities.  Building  on  the 
results  of  previous  summits,  the  July  2016  summit  in  Paris  saw  further  advances  on  the 
connectivity agenda, including an agreement to establish a regional market for electricity and 
an enhanced focus on energy efficiency improvements and greater use of renewable energy. 
Regional  initiatives,  such  as  the  South  East  European  Cooperation  Process,  continued  to 
foster  stabilisation  and  cooperation.  The  countries  also  opened  co-operation  in  new  areas, 
notably through the establishment of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO) and the 
agreement  to  launch  a  new  pilot  scheme  for  exchanges  of  young  civil  servants.  Western 
Balkan  countries  also  agreed  on  trade  facilitation  measures  and  embarked  on  measures  to 
further liberalise regional trade. Ultimately, the success of the cooperation will be measured 
against  the  delivery  of  connectivity  projects  on  the  ground.  It  is  now  urgent  that  physical 
works  are  launched  to  provide  tangible  proof  of  direct  benefits  for  citizens.  As  regards 
transport and energy projects, however, the implementation of connectivity reform measures 
agreed in 2015 at the WB6 summit in Vienna needs to be accelerated.  

Good  neighbourly  relations  and  regional  cooperation  are  essential  elements  of  the 
Stabilisation and  Association  and enlargement processes. There have  been ongoing  contacts 
and  cooperation  at  bilateral  and  regional  level,  also  in  sensitive  areas  such  as  war  crimes, 
missing  persons,  refugee  return,  organised  crime  and  police  cooperation.  Good  neighbourly 
relations  continue  to  be  reinforced  through  various  regional  cooperation  initiatives.  At  the 
same time, more responsible political leadership and further efforts towards reconciliation are 
essential for promoting stability and the creation of an environment conducive to overcoming 
the  legacy  of  the  past.  Statements  which  negatively  impact  on  good  neighbourly  relations 
should be avoided. 

7 

 
Further efforts are needed to overcome bilateral disputes between enlargement countries and 
with Member States. Bilateral issues need to be addressed by the parties concerned as early as 
possible and should not hold up the accession process, which should be based on established 
conditionality. Results in this regard have been limited. Progress in normalisation of relations 
between  Serbia  and  Kosovo  needs  to  be  accelerated.  As  regards  the  former  Yugoslav 
Republic of Macedonia, maintaining good neighbourly relations remains essential, including a 
negotiated and mutually acceptable solution to the name issue under UN auspices. Progress in 
the  United  Nations  led  settlement  talks  in  Cyprus  is  very  welcome.  In  order  to  facilitate 
further  progress,  Turkey  needs  to  fulfil  its  obligation  of  fully  implementing  the  Additional 
Protocol and make progress towards normalisation of relations with the Republic of Cyprus. 
This could provide new momentum to the accession process. The Commission also urges the 
avoidance of any kind of threat, source of friction or action that damages good neighbourly 
relations and the peaceful settlement of disputes. The Commission stresses all the sovereign 
rights  of  EU  Member  States.  This  includes,  inter  alia,  the  right  to  enter  into  bilateral 
agreements and to explore and exploit natural resources in accordance with the EU acquis and 
international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. 

III.   RECALIBRATING THE ENLARGEMENT PACKAGE 

a)  

Introducing the recalibrated reporting methodology to new areas 

In 2015, the Commission introduced a number of changes to the reporting methodology. The 
aim  was  to  further  increase  the  sharpness  of  the  assessments  as  well  as  the  usability  of  the 
package as a source of information and guidance for all stakeholders and to provide greater 
transparency  in  the  enlargement  process,  setting  out  more  clearly  where  countries  stand 
overall. The reports have an increased focus on the state of play to show more clearly where 
the countries stand in their respective preparations for meeting the membership criteria, they 
provide  stronger  guidance  on  what  the  countries  should  focus  on  in  the  following  year  and 
they  have  included  more  harmonised  reporting and  assessment  scales,  allowing  countries  to 
be directly compared. These changes reflect more clearly that the European integration efforts 
of  the  enlargement  countries  should  entail  a  steady  and  thorough  process  of  political  and 
economic reforms and should not be understood as a narrow set of technical negotiations.  

The recalibrated approach has been further expanded in 2016 beyond the pilot areas covered 
in 20151. It now also covers areas linked to economic development (free movement of goods, 
competition,  transport,  energy),  as  well  as  certain  areas  of  chapter  24  (migration,  border 
control,  asylum  and  fight  against  terrorism)  and  environment  and  climate  change.  This 
gradual  expansion  of  the  methodology  takes  into  account  the  need  to  ensure  appropriate 
sequencing  of  reforms  and  the  continued  need  to  focus  on  the  fundamentals.  The  new 
methodology will be further expanded in 2018.  

The harmonised assessment scales increased transparency and comparability of the reports. In 
order to have even more precise results, the assessment of the state of play has been further 
fine-tuned by using, where appropriate, interim steps between each two of the existing levels.  

1 The rule of law and fundamental rights (functioning of the judiciary, corruption, organised crime, freedom of 
expression),  the  economic  criteria,  public  administration  reform  and  three  chapters  closely  linked  to  these 
fundamentals (public procurement, statistics, financial control). 

8 

 
 
                                                            
 
b)  

Revised reporting on the economic criteria 

Building on last year's changes to the reporting on the economic criteria, the Commission has 
further refined its methodology and adjusted the sub-criteria that make up the two economic 
accession criteria. The aim of this adjustment is to ensure that enlargement countries will be 
economically  fit  and  contribute  to  the  competitiveness  and  stability  of  the  EU  when  they 
become members. 

The revised sub-criteria highlight the main economic shortcomings of the current enlargement 
countries  such  as  their  weak  business  environments  with  limited  access  to  finance,  high 
unemployment  rates,  poor  education  outcomes  and  low  levels  of  innovation  and  regional 
connectivity.  They  allow  for  a  more  focused  analysis  of  shortcomings  in  the  functioning  of 
markets and weakness in competitiveness. The new focus is also better aligned with the ERPs 
and  thus  contributes  to  providing  clearer  guidance  to  the  enlargement  countries  in  order  to 
reap  the  benefits  of  closer  integration  with  the  EU  before  accession  and  ultimately  meeting 
the economic criteria. 

c)  

From autumn to spring – the new package calendar 

The  Commission  plans  to  move  the  adoption  of  the  annual  Enlargement  package  from  its 
traditional time slot in the autumn to a new slot in the spring. This would mean that the next 
package  would  not  be  adopted  in  October/November  2017,  but  in  spring  2018.  Subsequent 
Council  conclusions  could  then  be  adopted  at  the  General  Affairs  Council  (GAC)  in  June. 
This  new  timing  would  allow  the  Commission  to  harmonise  its  reporting  period  with  the 
calendar year, which is the usual basis for gathering statistical data. This had been repeatedly 
proposed by the enlargement countries.  

The  new  timing  of  the  package  will  also  allow  the  Commission  to  harmonise  its  package 
reporting  cycle  with  the  ERP  cycle.  This  would  lend  more  weight  to  the  economic 
fundamentals of the enlargement policy, ensure stronger coherence between the package and 
the ERP process, and work to lend greater visibility to the latter. 

IV.   CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

Based  on  the  above  analysis  and  the  assessments  in  the  country  summaries  in  annex,  the 
Commission puts forward the following conclusions and recommendations: 

I 

1.  The  EU's  enlargement  policy  continues  to  be  a  strategic  investment  in  peace,  security, 
prosperity,  and  stability  in  Europe.  Built  on  strict  but  fair  conditionality  and  the 
principle  of  own  merits,  it  continues  to  drive  transformation  and  modernisation  in  the 
partner  countries  in  an  overall  challenging  environment.  Stabilisation  through  such 
transformation is in the EU's own interest. 

2.  The Commission's focus on "fundamentals first" has delivered results on the ground and 
the  reform  processes  are  moving  forward  overall,  albeit  at  different  speeds.  Given  the 
complex  nature  of  the  necessary  reforms,  it  is  a  long-term  process  and  shortcomings 
persist  in  a  number  of  key  areas.  Reforms  are  needed  in  in  the  areas  of  rule  of  law, 
fundamental  rights,  democratic institutions and  public administration  reform,  as  well  as 
on the economy, and the elected institutions need to move them forward for the benefits 

9 

 
 
of their own citizens. Economic reforms and a strengthening of the rule of law produce 
mutually reinforcing benefits. 

3.  Cooperation  with  Turkey  and  the  Western  Balkans  has  been  an  important  element  in 
handling the migration crisis with several countries playing a constructive role. The EU 
is  supporting  the  most  affected  countries,  first  and  foremost  Turkey,  in  their  efforts  to 
assist and protect refugees and migrants.  

4.  Good  neighbourly  relations  and  regional  cooperation  are  essential  parts  of  the 
enlargement  and  Stabilisation  and  Association  processes.  Further  efforts  are  needed  to 
overcome  bilateral  disputes,  which  must  not  hold  up  the  accession  process.  The  WB6 
cooperation in  the  Western  Balkans  continues to  play  an  important  role  in  this  context, 
including through the Berlin process. 

II 

5.  Turkey: Turkey is a key partner for the European Union. The EU strongly condemned 
the  failed  coup  attempt  of  15  July  as  a  direct  attack  on  democratic  principles  and 
expressed  its  full  support  and  solidarity  with  the  Turkish  people  and  its  democratic 
institutions.  Following  the  failed  coup  attempt,  a  state  of  emergency  was  declared  on 
20 July across Turkey for three months. It has since been extended by another 3 months. 

EU-Turkey relations face the same long term opportunities and challenges as before 15 
July. However, the far-reaching measures taken after the coup further deepened a number 
of  crucial  challenges  with  regard  to  the  respect  for  fundamental  rights  in  the  country, 
notably the freedom of expression, right to fair trial and due process. Further backsliding 
was noted as regards freedom of expression and in the functioning of the judiciary. The 
situation in the south-east remained one of the most critical challenges. The country saw a 
continued very serious deterioration in the security situation following the collapse of the 
Kurdish  settlement  process  in  July  2015  and  was  struck  by  several  large-scale  deadly 
terrorist  attacks  attributed  to  PKK  and  Da’esh.  The  EU  has  underlined  that  anti-terror 
measures  must  be  proportionate  and  respect  human  rights.  The  political  settlement 
process  of  the  Kurdish  issue  must  resume  without  delay.  The  EU  is  gravely  concerned 
about  the  arrest  of  several  HDP  Members  of  Parliament  on  charges  alleging  support  of 
terrorist activities. 

Given the scale and collective nature of measures taken since July, the EU has called on 
Turkey,  as  a  candidate  country,  to  observe  the  highest  standards  in  the  rule  of  law  and 
fundamental  rights.  The  Turkish  authorities  undertook  clear  commitments  to  this  end. 
The Commission urges Turkey to implement them in full, including through international 
monitoring  of  the  detentions,  trials  and  procedures  after  the  coup  attempt.  The  EU  is 
committed to working together with a democratic, inclusive and stable Turkey to address 
our  common  challenges.  Yet,  the  rule  of  law,  human  rights  and  fundamental  freedoms 
must be respected under all circumstances, and the parliament and all forces represented 
in the democratic institutions of the country must be able to play their constitutional role 
in full. Regarding the renewed considerations to introduce a bill in parliament to reinstate 
the death penalty, the EU recalls that the unequivocal rejection of the death penalty is an 
essential element of the EU acquis and a central international obligation to which Turkey 
has committed. 

The EU and Turkey deepened their relations in key areas of joint interest, as agreed at the 
EU-Turkey Summit of 29 November 2015. High level political dialogues and high level 
dialogues on energy and the economy took place. Turkey continued to make outstanding 
efforts  to  provide  shelter  to  over  2.7  million  refugees  from  Syria  and  Iraq.  The 

10 

 
cooperation  with  the  EU  on  migration  was  stepped  up  following  the  EU-Turkey 
Statement  of  18  March  2016.  In  combination  with  other  measures  taken,  this  led  to  a 
drastic  decrease  in  deaths  at  sea  and  a substantial  reduction  in  the  numbers  of  refugees 
and irregular migrants leaving Turkey for Greece. Turkey made substantial progress over 
the  past  year  in  fulfilling  the  benchmarks  of  the  visa  liberalisation  roadmap.  The 
Commission  made  a  proposal  to  lift  the  visa  requirement  on  the  understanding  that 
Turkey would fulfil the outstanding benchmarks. The accession process saw the opening 
of two more chapters in November 2015 and June 2016 respectively. This includes also 
preparatory  work  on  three  other  chapters  and  the  ongoing  updating  of  the  screening 
reports in the  key chapters 23 and 24. Both sides continued to  explore possible options 
for  upgrading  the  Customs  Union.  As  a  NATO,  G20,  OSCE  and  Council  of  Europe 
member,  Turkey  is  an  active  international  actor.  Turkey  remains  active  in  the 
international coalition in the fight against Da'esh and a key partner in the region. 

Turkey  should  also  address  macroeconomic  imbalances,  conduct  further  structural 
reforms  and  improve  the  business  environment,  particularly  in  the  sensitive  phase  after 
the failed coup attempt. 

Finally, in line with the repeated Council and Commission positions from previous years, 
it  is  now  urgent  that  Turkey  fulfils  its  obligation  of  fully  implementing  the  Additional 
Protocol  and  makes  progress  towards  normalisation  of  relations  with  the  Republic  of 
Cyprus.  The  Commission  welcomes  the  engagement  by  the  parties  to  the  UN-led 
settlement talks. It is now important that further progress is made in these talks. In order 
to facilitate such progress, Turkey's commitment and contribution in concrete terms to a 
comprehensive  settlement  is  crucial.  The  EU  is  ready  to  accommodate  the  terms  of  a 
settlement in line with the principles on which the Union is founded. 

6.  Montenegro: EU accession negotiations have progressed. The parliamentary elections of 
October 2016 were conducted under a substantially revised legal framework and, overall, 
in  a  more  participatory  and  transparent  manner.  The  environment  was  competitive  and 
characterised  by  general  respect  for  fundamental  freedoms.  The  relevant  national 
authorities  are  expected  to  swiftly  and  transparently  investigate  alleged  procedural 
irregularities, the arrests made and the temporary closure of two mobile communication 
platforms.  The  legal  framework  in  the  area  of  rule  of  law  is  largely  complete  and  the 
institutional set-up is in place. The entire rule of law system now needs to deliver more 
results,  in  particular  to  strengthen  the  track-record  in  the  fight  against  corruption  and 
organised  crime.  Progress  on  the  rule  of  law  chapters,  demonstrated  by  tangible  results 
notably on fighting corruption and organised crime, will continue to determine the pace 
of accession negotiations overall. Montenegro's fiscal position deteriorated and increasing 
public  debt  levels  challenge  fiscal  sustainability.  As  a  matter  of  priority,  Montenegro 
needs  to  take  measures  to  restrain  current  spending  and  improve  revenue  collection.  It 
should  also  reduce  disincentives  to  work,  develop  human  capital  and  a  competitive 
export-oriented  industry.  In  December  2015,  Montenegro  received  an  invitation  to  join 
NATO, which is an important achievement.  

7.  Serbia:  Following  early  national  elections  in  April,  the  new  Serbian  government 
programme  included  Serbia's  EU  accession  as  a  priority  goal.  Serbia  has  taken  major 
steps  towards  this  goal,  leading  to  the  first  four  chapters  of  the  accession  negotiations 
being opened, including on rule of law and on normalisation of its relations with Kosovo. 
The  overall  pace  of  EU  accession  negotiations  will  depend  in  particular  on  sustainable 
progress in these two areas. Serbia needs to deepen its engagement in the Dialogue with 
Kosovo, including the implementation of all agreements. The Commission looks forward 
to the opening of further chapters in the coming period. 

11 

 
The  economic  reforms  are  producing  results  and  need  to  continue,  with  particular 
emphasis  on  restructuring  state  owned  enterprises  and  public  utilities.  Serbia's  leading 
role  in  the  region  is  instrumental  in  improving  regional  ties  and  preserving  stability. 
Serbia  has  been  affected  by  the  migration  crisis  and  played  an  active  and  constructive 
role  and  cooperated  with  neighbouring  countries  and  Member  States  while  managing 
mixed migration flows. 

8.  The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: The last year has been one of continuing 
political  crisis.  Concerns  about  state  capture  affecting  the  functioning  of  democratic 
institutions  and  key  areas  of  society  persist.  The  country  needs  to  fully  implement  the 
Pržino  agreement,  notably  by  ensuring  a  credible  electoral  process  in  relation  to  the 
December early parliamentary elections. The efforts of the Special Prosecutor to establish 
legal  accountability  must  be  supported  and  the  Parliament  must  establish  political 
responsibility  for  the  wiretaps  and  their  content.  Substantial  progress  is  still  needed  in 
terms  of  concrete  implementation  of  the  Urgent  Reform  Priorities.  Macroeconomic 
stability  should  continue  to  be  preserved  and  in  particular  the  public  deficit  should  be 
controlled  more  rigorously  and  transparency  and  implementation  of  public  expenditure 
improved. Building upon recent progress in implementing confidence-building measures 
with  Greece,  decisive  steps  are  needed  to  solve  the  'name  issue'.  The  country  has  been 
affected by migration crisis and has cooperated with neighbouring countries and Member 
States while managing mixed migration flows. 

Recent positive steps in the context of the Pržino Agreement provide a real opportunity 
for  political  leaders  to  finally  overcome  the  long-standing  crisis  and  address  systemic 
issues. In light of this, the Commission is prepared to extend its recommendation to open 
accession  negotiations  with  the  former  Yugoslav  Republic  of  Macedonia.  This  shall, 
however,  be  conditional on progress with  the implementation of the Pržino Agreement, 
notably  the  holding  of  credible  parliamentary  elections  and  substantial  progress  in  the 
implementation of the Urgent Reform Priorities. 

9.  Albania: Albania has continued to make steady progress towards fulfilling all of the five 
the  opening  of  accession  negotiations.  Pivotal  constitutional 
key  priorities  for 
amendments  were  unanimously  adopted  in  July  2016,  launching  a  thorough  and 
comprehensive  reform  process  of  the  judicial  system.  This  process  will  include  an  in-
depth re-evaluation of judges and prosecutors. Public administration reform continued to 
be  implemented  consistently.  Work  towards  the  establishment  of  solid  track  records  of 
proactive investigations, prosecutions and convictions in the fight against corruption and 
organised  crime  has  continued.  Fundamental  rights  continue  to  be  broadly  respected  in 
the country.  

In  view  of  the  above  progress  in  meeting  the  key  priorities  and  subject  to  credible  and 
tangible  progress  in  the  implementation  of  the  justice  reform,  in  particular  the  re-
evaluation  of  judges  and  prosecutors  (vetting),  the  Commission  recommends  opening 
accession negotiations with Albania.  

10.  Bosnia and Herzegovina: Bosnia and Herzegovina delivered on the priorities stemming 
from  its  reform  process,  particularly  as  regards  the  Reform  Agenda.  On  this  basis,  the 
Council  tasked  the  Commission  to  prepare  an  opinion  on  the  membership  application. 
The  significant  EU  oriented  reform  efforts  need  to  be  sustained  in  order  to  address  the 
deeply  rooted  structural  problems  that  have  been  holding  back  the  development  of  the 
country,  including  in  socio-economic  terms.  Strengthening  the  rule  of  law  and  public 
administration  in  line  with  European  standards  on  all  levels  of  government,  as  well  as 
further  improving  cooperation  between  all  levels  remains  a  priority.  The  adopted 

12 

 
coordination mechanism on EU matters needs to be implemented to enable the country to 
face the challenges of the EU integration process, including with regard to the adoption of 
the necessary country-wide strategies. The protocol on SAA adaptation initialled in July 
2016 needs to be signed. 

11.  Kosovo:  The  Commission  welcomes  the  entry  into  force  of  the  Stabilisation  and 
Association  Agreement  (SAA)  on  1  April  2016,  which  provides  a  comprehensive 
framework  for  closer  political  and  economic  relations  between  the  EU  and  Kosovo. 
Kosovo  has  taken  major  steps  in  fulfilling  the  requirements  of  the  visa  liberalisation 
roadmap, allowing the Commission to issue a formal proposal in May 2016 to lift the visa 
requirement,  provided  the  two  remaining  requirements  -  to  ratify  the  border/boundary 
agreement  with  Montenegro  and  continue  to  strengthen  its  track  record  in  the  fight 
against  organised  crime  and  corruption  –  are  met.  Parliamentary  work  was  adversely 
affected by fundamental obstruction by different political parties.  

Political actors need to find a way to overcome the protracted political stalemate and to 
pave  the  way  for  addressing  the  numerous  reform  challenges  ahead,  in  particular  as 
regards the rule of law and the need for structural economic reforms addressing the high 
level  of  unemployment.  A  European  Reform  Agenda  has  been  developed  to  assist  the 
necessary  implementation  of  the  SAA.  Kosovo  met  the  remaining  international 
obligations  in  relation  to  the  establishment  of  the  Specialist  Chambers  and  Specialist 
Prosecution  Office  to  investigate  allegations  of  international  crimes  committed  in  the 
context  of  the  Kosovo  conflict.  The  mandate  of  EULEX  has  been  extended  until  June 
2018. Kosovo needs to deepen its engagement in the Dialogue with Serbia, including the 
implementation of all agreements. 

13 

 
 
 
V.  

ANNEXES 

1. Summaries of the findings of the reports 

2. Key statistics 

14 

 
ANNEX 1 –   Summaries of the findings of the reports  

Turkey 

A military coup attempt on the night of 15 July left 241 casualties and 2 196 people wounded. 
The Turkish government with the support of the entire Turkish political spectrum and society, 
succeeded  in  overcoming  the  coup  attempt.  The  Turkish  Grand  National  Assembly 
symbolically held a special session already on 16 July and adopted a declaration approved by 
all parties represented in Parliament. The government attributed the organisation of the coup 
attempt to the Gülen movement. 

The EU strongly and immediately condemned the attempted coup, which represented a direct 
attack  on  democracy  in  Turkey  as  such,  and  reiterated  its  full  support  to  the  democratic 
institutions of the country.  

On  20 July  a  state  of  emergency  was  declared  across  Turkey  for  three  months,  further 
extended  for  another  three  months  on  3  October.  Significant  legislative  amendments  were 
introduced  by  decree.  Turkey  notified  the  Council  of  Europe  of  a  derogation  from  its 
obligation to secure a number of fundamental rights protected by the European Convention on 
Human  Rights.  Following  the  coup  attempt,  very  extensive  suspensions,  dismissals,  arrests 
and detentions took place over alleged links to the Gülen movement and involvement in the 
attempted coup. The measures affected the whole spectrum of society with particular impact 
on  the  judiciary,  police,  gendarmerie,  military,  civil  service,  local  authorities,  academia, 
teachers,  lawyers,  the  media  and  the  business  community.  Multiple  institutions  and  private 
companies were shut down, their assets seized or transferred to public institutions.  

In the wake of the post-coup measures, the EU called on the authorities to observe the highest 
standards in the rule of law and fundamental rights. While a relationship of trust and loyalty 
should exist between civil servants and the state and measures can be taken to ensure that, any 
allegation  of  wrongdoing  should  be  established  via  transparent  procedures  in  all  individual 
cases. Individual criminal liability can only be established with full respect for the separation 
of  powers,  the  full  independence  of  the  judiciary  and  the  right  of  every  individual  to  a  fair 
trial, including through effective access to a lawyer. Turkey should ensure that any measure is 
taken  only  to  the  extent  strictly  required  to  the  exigencies  of  the  situation  and  in  all  cases 
stands  the  test  of  necessity  and  proportionality.  The  measures  taken  under  the  state  of 
emergency are undergoing scrutiny by the Council of Europe. Turkey should urgently address 
the  recommendations  of  the  Commissioner  for  Human  Rights  of  the  Council  of  Europe  of 
October 2016. 

With  regard  to  the  political  criteria,  prior  to  the  coup  attempt  the  Parliament  engaged  in  a 
heavy legislative agenda in order to implement the ambitious government reform action plan 
for 2016 and the legislative requirements of the visa liberalisation roadmap. However, several 
key pieces of legislation adopted regarding the rule of law and fundamental rights were not in 
line  with  European  standards,  such  as  the  law  on  data  protection.  Political  confrontation 
continued  to  beset  the  work  of  the  legislative.  The  adoption  in  May  of  a  law  allowing  the 
immunity of a large number of deputies to be lifted and the ensuing detentions and arrests of 
several HDP Members of Parliament, including the two Co-Chairs, in November is a matter 
of grave concern.  

The  situation in  the south-east remained one of the most  critical challenges for the country. 
Turkey saw a continued very serious deterioration in the security situation, leading to heavy 
casualties  following  the  collapse  of  the  Kurdish  settlement  process  in  July  2015  and  was 
struck  by  several  large-scale  deadly  terrorist  attacks  by  PKK  and  Da’esh.  The  authorities 
pursued  their  extensive  anti-terror  military  and  security  campaign  against  the  Kurdistan 

15 

 
Workers’  Party  (PKK),  which  remains  on  the  EU  list  of  terrorist  organisations.  Serious 
allegations of human rights violations and disproportionate use of force by the security forces 
in  the  south-east  were  increasingly  reported.  Many  elected  representatives  and  municipal 
executives  in  the  south-east  were  suspended,  removed  from  their  duties,  or  arrested  under 
terrorism-related charges, some of them on the basis of decrees under the state of emergency 
following the coup attempt. However, anti-terror measures need to be proportionate and must 
respect  human  rights.  The  settlement  of  the  Kurdish  issue  through  a  political  process  is  the 
only  way  forward;  reconciliation  and  reconstruction  are  also  becoming  key  issues  for  the 
authorities to address. 

Civil  society  made  what  efforts  it  could  to  remain  active  and  involved  in  public  life. 
Independent  civil  society  organisations  are  rarely  involved  in  law-  and  policy-making 
processes.  Some  of  their  representatives,  including  human  rights  defenders,  have  been 
detained and there were credible claims of intimidation. A large number of organisations were 
closed  as  part  of  the  post-coup  measures  taken  by  the  government  for  alleged  links  to  the 
Gülen movement.  

Turkey  is  moderately  prepared  in  the  area  of  public  administration  reform  with  a  strong 
commitment  to  an  open,  responsive  administration.  However,  there  has  been  backsliding  in 
the area of public service and human resources management in particular in the aftermath of 
the coup attempt. The structural impact on the functioning of the civil service of the measures 
taken after the coup attempt remains to be assessed.  

Turkey’s  judicial  system  is  at  an  early  stage/has  some  level  of  preparation.  There  has  been 
backsliding in the past year, in particular with regard to the independence of the judiciary. The 
extensive changes to the structures and composition of high courts are of serious concern and 
are not in line with European standards. Judges and prosecutors continued to be removed from 
their profession and in some cases were arrested, on allegations of conspiring with the Gülen 
movement. This situation worsened further after the July coup attempt, following which one 
fifth of the judges and prosecutors were dismissed and saw their assets frozen. The judiciary 
must work in an environment allowing it to perform its duties in an independent and impartial 
manner,  with  the  executive  and  legislature  fully  respecting  the  separation  of  powers.  Under 
the state of emergency, Turkey has further extended for certain offences the pre-trial detention 
to  30  days  without  access  to  a  judge  against  ECtHR  case  law  and  an  important  part  of  the 
judiciary is subject to these measures. 

The country has some level of preparation for the fight against corruption. Corruption remains 
prevalent in many areas and continues to be a serious problem. The adoption of a new strategy 
and anti-corruption action plan is a step forward even if it remains rather limited in scope. The 
legal framework continues to suffer from important gaps and the executive’s influence on the 
investigation  and  prosecution  of  high-profile  corruption  cases  remains  a  major  source  of 
concern. Corruption perception remains high.  

Turkey  has  achieved  some  level  of  preparation  in  the  fight  against  organised  crime. 
Institutional  capacity  was  increased  and  new  strategies  and  action  plans  were  adopted. 
However, statistics on the number of final convictions and other important indicators are not 
available. Financial investigations remain underused. Precautionary freezing of assets is rarely 
applied  and  the  level  of  assets  confiscated  is  low.  In  the  fight  against  terrorism,  a 
comprehensive legal framework on terrorism financing is in place. The anti-terror law is not 
in  line  with  the  acquis  with  regard  to  its  scope  and  definitions  and  its  application  raises 
serious  fundamental  rights  concerns.  Both  the  criminal  and  anti-terror  legislation  should  be 
aligned with ECtHR case-law, without reducing the capacity of Turkey to fight terrorism. The 
proportionality principle must be observed in practice. 

16 

 
The  Turkish  legal  framework  includes  general  guarantees  of  respect  for  human  and 
fundamental rights, which need to be further improved. The enforcement of rights stemming 
from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the case-law of the European 
Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is not yet ensured. Many allegations of serious violations of 
the  prohibition  of  torture  and  ill-treatment  and  of  procedural  rights  were  reported  in  the 
immediate  aftermath  of  the  coup  attempt.  Yet,  all  measures  taken  must  be  in  line  with  the 
principles of proportionality and respect for human rights. The new Law on the Human Rights 
and  Equality  Institution  of  Turkey  is  a  step  in  the  right  direction.  It  contains  provisions  on 
prohibiting discrimination on a large number of grounds, but does not explicitly cover sexual 
orientation. There is still a need to adopt a fully comprehensive dedicated law on combating 
discrimination.  A  legal  vacuum  exists  on  human  rights  cases  as  the  new  National  Human 
Rights and Equality institution has not yet been established. The rights of the most vulnerable 
groups and of persons belonging to minorities should be sufficiently protected. Gender-based 
violence, discrimination, hate speech against minorities, hate crime and violations of human 
rights  of  lesbian,  gay,  bisexual,  transgender  and  intersex  (LGBTI)  persons  continue  to  be  a 
source of a serious concern.  

There  has  been  serious  backsliding  in  the  past  year  in  the  area  of  freedom  of  expression. 
Selective and arbitrary application of the law, especially of the provisions on national security 
and  the  fight  against  terrorism,  is  having  a  negative  impact  on  freedom  of  expression. 
Ongoing and new criminal cases against journalists, writers or social media users, withdrawal 
of accreditations, high numbers of arrests of journalists as well as closure of numerous media 
outlets  in  the  aftermath  of  the  July  attempted  coup  are  of  serious  concern.  Freedom  of 
assembly continues to be overly restricted, in law and practice. 

Turkey  continued  to  express  support  for  the  talks  on  the  Cyprus  settlement  between  the 
leaders  of  the  two  communities,  and  for  the  efforts  of  the  UN  Secretary-General’s  Special 
Adviser.  Turkey’s  commitment  and  contribution  in  concrete  terms  to  this  comprehensive 
settlement remains crucial. However, Turkey has still not fulfilled its obligation to ensure full 
and  non-discriminatory  implementation  of  the  Additional  Protocol  to  the  Association 
Agreement  and  has  not  removed  all  obstacles  to  the  free  movement  of  goods,  including 
restrictions  on  direct  transport  links  with  Cyprus.  There  was  no  progress  on  normalising 
bilateral relations with the Republic of Cyprus. The conclusions on Turkey that were adopted 
by the Council (General Affairs and External Relations) on 11 December 2006 and endorsed 
by the European Council in December 2006 remain in force. They stipulate that negotiations 
will not be opened on eight chapters2 relating to Turkey’s restrictions regarding the Republic 
of  Cyprus  and  no  chapter  will  be  provisionally  closed  until  the  Commission  confirms  that 
Turkey has fully implemented the Additional Protocol to the Association Agreement.  

Turkey  needs  to  commit  itself  unequivocally  to  good  neighbourly  relations,  international 
agreements, and to the peaceful settlement of disputes in accordance with the United Nations 
Charter, having recourse, if necessary, to the International Court of Justice. In this context, the 
EU has expressed once again serious concern and urged Turkey to avoid any kind of threat or 
action  directed  against  a  Member  State,  or  source  of  friction  or  actions  that  damages  good 
neighbourly relations and the peaceful settlement of disputes. 

Regarding  the  economic  criteria,  the  Turkish  economy  is  well  advanced  and  can  be 
considered a functioning market economy. Still, the large external deficit makes the Turkish 
economy  vulnerable  to  financial  uncertainty,  changes  in  global  investors'  sentiment  and 
political risks. The central bank cut interest rates even though inflation remained well above 

2Free movement of goods, right of establishment and freedom to provide services, financial services, agriculture 
and rural development, fisheries, transport policy, customs union, and external relations. 

17 

 
                                                            
the official target. The business environment continued to deteriorate due to targeted actions 
against  critical  media and business people and political  opponents through the active use  of 
the  tax  authority,  the  financial  crimes  unit  and  courts.  The  implementation  of  structural 
reforms to improve the functioning of the markets for goods, services and labour has stalled. 
Overall, there was backsliding. 

Turkey has a good level of preparation in achieving the capacity to cope with the competitive 
pressure  and  market  forces  within  the  EU.  Some  progress  was  made  in  a  number  of  areas, 
most  notably  through  further  liberalising  the  energy  sector.  Significant  problems  remain  as 
regards the quality of education. There are also problems of access to education for girls. The 
lira's real appreciation has reduced the economy's price competitiveness. 

Regarding  its  ability  to  assume  the  obligations  of  membership,  Turkey  has  continued  to 
align  with  the  acquis.  With  the  positive  exception  of  the  visa  liberalisation  related  work, 
efforts  continued  at  a  limited  pace.  Turkey  is  well  advanced  in  the  areas  of  company  law, 
trans-European  networks  and  science  and  research  and  it  has  achieved  a  good  level  of 
preparation  in  the  areas  of  free  movement  of  goods,  intellectual  property  law,  financial 
services,  enterprise  and  industrial  policy,  consumer  and  health  protection,  customs  union, 
external  relations  and  financial  control.  Turkey  is  only  moderately  prepared  on  public 
procurement as important gaps remain in its alignment. Turkey is also moderately prepared in 
the  area  of statistics  and  transport policy  where  further  significant  efforts are  needed  across 
the  board.  Turkey  has  only  reached  some  level  of  preparation  in  environment  and  climate 
change where more ambitious and better coordinated policies still need to be established and 
implemented. In all areas, more attention needs to be given to enforce legislation whilst many 
areas require further significant progress to achieve legislative alignment with the EU acquis. 

Montenegro 

Concerning  the  political  criteria,  a  political  agreement  on  the  organisation  of  free  and  fair 
elections  led  to  the  establishment  of  a  "government  of  electoral  trust"  in  May.  Despite 
persisting  polarisation  of  the  political  environment,  this  has  demonstrated  the  capacity  to 
reach  compromises  between  the  government  and  parts  of  the  opposition.  The  parliamentary 
elections  of  October  2016  were  conducted  under  a  substantially  revised  legal  framework. 
Despite  the  technical  delays  and  difficult  relationships  between  responsible  institutions, 
overall  the  election  preparations  were  conducted  in  a  more  participatory  and  transparent 
manner. The elections were held in a competitive environment and characterised by general 
respect  for  fundamental  freedoms.  The  relevant  national  authorities  are  expected  to  swiftly 
and  transparently  investigate  alleged  procedural  irregularities,  the  arrests  made  and  the 
temporary  closure  of  two  mobile  communication  platforms.  There  has  been  no  political 
follow-up to the alleged abuse of public funds for party political purposes ("audio recordings 
affair").  

Montenegro  is  moderately  prepared  with  the  reform  of  its  public  administration.  Some 
progress  has  been  made,  notably  with  the  adoption  of  the  public  administration  reform 
strategy 2016-2020, the public financial management reform programme, the entry into force 
of  the  new  law  on  salaries  and  the  simplification  of  administrative  procedures.  However, 
strong political will is needed to effectively address the de-politicisation of public service and 
right-sizing of the state administration. 

The  judicial  system  is  moderately  prepared.  During  the  reporting  period,  Montenegro  made 
some  progress  in  this  field.  The  capacity  of  the  Judicial  and  Prosecutorial  Council  has 
improved.  However,  the  new  legislative  framework  for  increasing  the  independence, 

18 

 
 
accountability and professionalism of the judiciary, as well as the code of ethics, have not yet 
been fully implemented. Measures to reduce the number of pending cases and the total length 
of proceedings need to continue.  

Montenegro has achieved some level of preparation in the fight against corruption. Corruption 
remains prevalent in many areas and continues to be a serious problem. The Anti-Corruption 
Agency started its work in 2016. The process of institution building is largely complete. All 
institutions should demonstrate a more proactive attitude to fulfilling their mandate. Despite 
some further steps taken, the track record both on successful investigations and convictions, in 
particular  in  high-level  corruption  cases,  and  on  prevention  of  corruption  remains  limited. 
Montenegro needs to increase the capacity to carry out financial investigations and establish 
track records of seizure and confiscation of criminal assets. 

Montenegro  has  achieved  some  level  of  preparation  in  the  fight  against  organised  crime. 
Some  progress  was  made,  notably  on  strengthening  the  legal,  regulatory  and  institutional 
framework.  Efforts  should  continue  to  develop  the  track  record  in  organised  crime  cases, 
especially  as  regards  trafficking  in  human  beings  and  money  laundering  where  results  are 
limited. The number of suspicious bank transactions detected remains low. 

Montenegro  completed  several  legislative  reforms  to  further  align  with  the  EU  and 
international  human  rights  standards  and  ensure  that  adequate  mechanisms  are  in  place  to 
protect  vulnerable  groups  from  discrimination.  Implementation  of  the  legislation  remains 
weak.  Amendments  to  the  overall  legislative  framework,  to  ensure  a  coherent  sanctioning 
policy for human rights violations, have not been adopted yet. Institutional capacity needs to 
increase 
the  most  vulnerable  and  most 
further.  The  Roma  minority 
discriminated-against community in various areas of life. 

remains 

Montenegro has achieved some level of preparation in the area of freedom of expression, but 
no further progress was made in the past year. The number of defamation cases remains high, 
which points to weak self-regulation mechanisms, as  well as  to challenges in understanding 
the role of the media. Montenegro still needs to achieve overall alignment with the case-law 
of  the  European  Court  of  Human  Rights.  The  premises  of  one  commercial  media  company 
were damaged and several journalists were physically and verbally assaulted and threatened 
during anti-government protests in October 2015. There has been no progress in the resolution 
of cases of attacks on journalists. Transparency and non-discrimination in state advertising in 
the media should be ensured. The revised Code of Ethics for Journalists must be effectively 
and uniformly applied across the media community.  

Montenegro continued to play a constructive role in regional cooperation. It ratified its border 
agreements with Bosnia and Herzegovina and with Kosovo.  

As  regards  economic  criteria,  Montenegro  is  moderately  prepared  in  developing  a 
functioning market  economy.  Some  progress  was  made  to  strengthen  the  functioning  of  the 
financial and labour markets, as well as on improving the business environment. Investments 
in infrastructure and tourism support economic activity. However, rapidly rising public debt 
and high fiscal deficits, together with high external imbalances and high unemployment are of 
concern.  The  combined  effects  of  large-scale  public  infrastructure  investments  and  several 
new  expensive  social  expenditure  programmes  challenge  fiscal  sustainability.  Immediate 
corrective measures are required, as called for by the ERP policy guidance. Other problems to 
be tackled include high external imbalances and low labour market participation and still low 
credit growth amid high impaired bank loans. 

  This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ 
Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence. 

19 

 
                                                            
Montenegro  is  moderately  prepared  in  its  capacity  to  cope  with  competitive  pressure  and 
market  forces  within  the  Union.  Some  progress  was  achieved  in  improving  the  quality  of 
infrastructure,  the  energy  market  and  the  digitalisation  of  the  economy.  SMEs  support  is 
modest  but  developing  gradually.  However,  substantial  efforts  are  still  required  to  develop 
human capital and a competitive export-oriented industry. 

Concerning  its  ability  to  assume  the  obligations  of  membership,  important  work  on 
alignment  and  preparation  for  the  implementation  of  the  acquis  has  taken  place  and 
Montenegro is  moderately  prepared in  many chapters, such as  the free movement of goods, 
public  procurement,  statistics  as  well  as  justice,  freedom  and  security.  Montenegro  has 
continued to align with all EU common foreign and security policy positions and declarations. 
Montenegro is at an early stage of preparation regarding fisheries and budgetary and financial 
provisions  and  at  some  level  of  preparation  in  the  area  of  environment  and  climate  change. 
Good progress has been made in the areas of free movement of goods, agriculture and rural 
development,  food  safety,  veterinary  and  phytosanitary  policy,  energy,  environment  and 
climate  change,  customs  union,  external  relations  and  financial  control.  Looking  ahead, 
Montenegro  should  focus  in  particular  on  competition  policy  and  economic  and  monetary 
policy.  Strengthening  the  administrative  capacity  for  ensuring  the  application  of  the  acquis 
remains a substantial challenge for Montenegro. 

Serbia 

As  regards  the  political  criteria,  the  early  national  elections,  held  in  April  together  with 
provincial  and  local  elections,  took  place  in  a  calm  atmosphere.  The  recommendations  of 
international  observers  need  to  be  followed  up,  including  those  on  ensuring  that  campaign 
financing  and  the  registration  process  are  transparent.  The  new  government  programme 
included  Serbia's  EU  accession  as  a  priority  goal.  Involvement  of  parliament  and 
stakeholders,  including  civil  society,  in  the  accession  process,  was  further  enhanced. 
However, the  inclusiveness, transparency  and quality of law-making and effective oversight 
of  the  executive  need  to  be  further  enhanced,  and  the  use  of  urgent  procedures  limited. 
Constitutional  reforms  are  needed  for  alignment  with  EU  standards  in  some  areas.  There  is 
scope  for  improved  cooperation  between  the  executive  and  independent  regulatory 
institutions. 

Serbia is moderately prepared in the area of public administration reform. Good progress was 
achieved with the adoption of the public financial management reform programme, strategies 
on  e-government  and  on  regulatory  reform  and  policy-making,  and  of  new  laws  on 
administrative procedures, public salaries and local and provincial civil servants. Serbia needs 
to implement its reform targets, professionalise and depoliticise the administration and make 
recruitment  and  dismissal  procedures  more  transparent,  especially  for  senior  management 
positions.  

The judicial system has reached some level of preparation. Some steps were taken to promote 
a merit-based recruitment system, and harmonise the jurisprudence. Further steps are needed 
to tackle political influence. The quality and efficiency of the judiciary and access to justice 
remain  undermined  by  an  uneven  distribution  of  workload,  a  burdensome  case  backlog  and 
the lack of a free legal aid system.  

Serbia  has  some  level  of  preparation  in  preventing  and  fighting  corruption.  Corruption 
remains prevalent in many areas and continues to be a serious problem. The anti-corruption 
effort  has  yet  to  yield meaningful  results.  The  institutional  setup  is  not  yet  functioning  as  a 

20 

 
 
credible  deterrent  for  corruptive  practices.  A  track  record  of  effective  investigations, 
prosecutions and convictions in corruption cases is required, including at high level. 

Serbia has some level of preparation in the fight against organised crime. Some progress has 
been  made  in  adopting  a  new  police  law,  reorganising  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior  and  in 
adopting  the  first  serious  and  organised  crime  threat  assessment  (SOCTA)  using  Europol 
methodology.  A  credible  track  record  in  the  fight  against  organised  crime  still  needs  to  be 
established. 

The  legal  and  institutional  framework  for  the  respect  of  fundamental  rights  is  in  place. 
Consistent  implementation  across  the  country  needs  to  be  ensured,  including  as  regards 
protection of minorities. No progress was made to improve conditions for the full exercise of 
freedom of expression, where Serbia has achieved some level of preparation. Serbia was the 
first  enlargement  country  to  introduce  the  EU  Index  of  Gender  Equality.  Further  sustained 
efforts  are  needed  to  improve  the  situation  of  persons  belonging  to  the  most  discriminated 
groups  (Roma,  lesbian,  gay,  bisexual,  transgender  and  intersex  persons,  persons  with 
disabilities, persons with HIV/AIDS and other socially vulnerable groups). 

Serbia  participated  constructively  in  regional  initiatives  and  worked  to  improve  its  bilateral 
relations  in  a  spirit  of  reconciliation,  good  neighbourly  relations  and  establish  a  climate 
conducive  to  addressing  open  bilateral  issues  and  the  legacies  of  the  past.  The  signature  in 
June  of  a  joint  declaration  with  Croatia  tackling  certain  bilateral  issues  was  a  positive 
development. Such an approach is key for reconciliation, peace and cooperation in the region, 
and should be pursued consistently. 

Regarding  the  normalisation  of  relations  with  Kosovo,  Serbia  remained  committed  to  the 
implementation  of  the  agreements  reached  in  the  EU-  facilitated  dialogue.  Progress  was 
limited,  also  due  to  the  electoral  process  in  Serbia  and  the  domestic  situation  in  Kosovo. 
However,  momentum  was  regained  in  August  2016  with  the  start  of  the  work  on  the 
Mitrovica bridge and freedom of movement. Continued efforts are needed to implement the 
agreements already reached with Kosovo. The steps taken should have a positive and concrete 
impact on the everyday life of citizens in both Serbia and Kosovo.   

As regards the economic criteria, Serbia is moderately prepared in developing a functioning 
market  economy.  Good  progress  was  made  to  address  some  of  the  policy  weaknesses,  in 
particular  with  regard  to  the  budget  deficit  and  restructuring  of  publicly-owned  enterprises. 
Economic  reforms  have  brought  clear  results  in  terms  of  growth  prospects  and  reduction  of 
domestic  and  external  imbalances. In  view  of  the  still  high  level  of  government  debt,  fiscal 
consolidation needs to be sustained. The restructuring of large state-owned utilities is still to 
be completed. Credit activity is recovering but the high level of non-performing loans remains 
an  issue.  Unemployment  remains  high,  particularly  among  youth.  Further  expansion  of  the  
private sector is hampered by weaknesses in the rule of law.  

Serbia is moderately prepared to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the 
Union.  Public  and  private  investments  increased,  though  the  level  of  investment  activity 
remains  below  the  economy's  needs.  The  quality,  equality  and  relevance  of  education  and 
training do not match societal needs. Some progress was made concerning support to SMEs 
and  entrepreneurship  but  SMEs  face  a  number  of  challenges,  including  an  unpredictable 
business  environment,  a  high  level  of  para-fiscal  charges,  and  difficult  and  costly  access  to 
finance. 

As  regards  its  ability  to  assume  the  obligations  of  membership,  Serbia  has  continued  to 
align  its  legislation  with  the  EU  acquis  across  the  board.  Adequate  financial  and  human 
resources and sound strategic frameworks will be crucial to maintaining the pace of reforms. 

21 

 
Serbia  has  a  good  level  of  preparation  in  areas  such  as  company  law,  intellectual  property, 
science  and  research,  education  and  culture  and  customs.  Serbia  needs  to  further  improve 
investment  planning  and  prioritisation  of  strategically  important  and  mature  infrastructure 
projects through  its  Single  Project Pipeline  and  National  Investment  Committee,  notably  on 
energy  and  transport.  In  the  areas  of  public  procurement,  statistics,  monetary  policy  or 
financial  control,  Serbia  is  moderately  prepared.  Serbia  will  need  to  align  its  foreign  and 
security policy progressively with the European Union's common foreign and security policy 
in the period up to accession. Serbia needs to address, as a matter of priority, issues of non-
compliance with the SAA, in particular on safeguard measures on some agricultural products, 
State aid control, and fiscal discrimination.  

Serbia continued to be affected by the migration crisis. This created a substantial burden on its 
asylum and migration system. Serbia continued to cooperate with neighbouring countries and 
Member  States,  ensured  the  effective  screening  of  refugees  and  migrants,  and  made 
substantial  efforts  to  provide  shelter  and  humanitarian  supplies,  with  EU  support  as  well  as 
the support of others. It is important that Serbia remains engaged. Serbia should also maintain 
its efforts to decrease the number of unfounded asylum applications lodged by its nationals in 
EU Member States.  

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 

Concerning  the  political  criteria,  the  country  was  faced  with  the  continuation  of  the  most 
severe  political  crisis  since  2001.  Democracy  and  rule  of  law  have  been  constantly 
challenged,  in  particular  due  to  state  capture  affecting  the  functioning  of  democratic 
institutions and key areas of society. The country suffers from a divisive political culture and 
a lack of capacity for compromise. On 20 July and 31 August 2016, leaders of the four main 
political parties reached a deal on the implementation of the Pržino Agreement, including by 
setting  11  December  2016  as  the  date  for  early  parliamentary  elections  and  declaring  their 
support  to  the  work  of  the  Special  Prosecutor.  They  reiterated  also  their  commitment  to 
implement the ‘Urgent Reform Priorities'. 

The inter-ethnic situation remained fragile. The review of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, 
which ended the 2001 conflict and provides the framework for the inter-ethnic relations, still 
needs to be completed in a transparent and inclusive manner.  

Civil  society  played  a  constructive  role  in  supporting  democratic  processes  and  ensuring 
greater checks and balances. At the same time, civil society organisations continue to express 
their  concerns  about  the  deterioration  of  the  climate  in  which  they  operate  and  the  limited 
government commitment to dialogue, as well as about public attacks by politicians and pro-
government media. 

The  country  is  moderately  prepared  with  the  reform  of  its  public  administration.  There  has 
been some progress, although limited, over the past year. The implementation of the new legal 
framework on human resources management started. However, there is insufficient progress 
in  the  implementation  of  the  Commission's  previous  recommendations.  Rather  than  being 
suspended,  temporary  contracts  continued  to  be  transformed  into  permanent  ones  without 
open  competition.  Ineffective  accountability  lines,  the  use  of  the  public  sector  as  a  political 
instrument, allegations of pressure exerted on public employees and alleged politicisation of 
administration  in  an  electoral  year  continue  to  be  of  concern.  A  comprehensive  2017-2022 
public administration reform strategy is belatedly under preparation. Furthermore, the lack of 
political commitment to deliver on necessary reforms in public financial management led to a 
significant reduction of EU financial assistance in 2016.  

22 

 
 
The country's judicial system has some level of preparation. However, the situation has been 
backsliding since 2014 and achievements of the previous decade’s reform process have been 
undermined  by  recurrent  political  interference  in  the  work  of  the  judiciary.  The  authorities 
failed  to  demonstrate  necessary  political  will  to  address  effectively  the  underlying  issues  as 
identified in the ‘Urgent Reform Priorities’. The obstructions faced by the newly established 
Special Prosecutor have shown the need to address effectively the lack of independence of the 
judiciary and to prevent selective justice. 

Concerning the fight against corruption, the country has some level of preparation. Corruption 
remains prevalent in  many areas and continues to  be a serious problem. The legislative and 
institutional  framework  has  been  developed.  However,  the  structural  shortcomings  of  the 
State  Commission  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  and  political  interference  in  its  work  have 
minimised  the  impact  of  past  efforts.  There  is  still  a  need  to  establish  a  convincing  track 
record,  especially  on  high  level  corruption  cases.  In  the  fight  against  organised  crime,  the 
country  has reached some level of preparation. The legislative framework  is  broadly  in  line 
with European standards and strategies have been elaborated. However, the law enforcement 
capacity to investigate financial crimes and confiscate assets needs to be developed further. 

Concerning  the  protection  of  human  rights,  the  legislative  and  institutional  framework  is 
largely in line with the European standards. More efforts are needed in practice to ensure the 
respect of human rights of vulnerable groups, including refugees and migrants. There is also a 
continuing lack of political will and adequate resources to enable the relevant supervisory and 
regulatory bodies to fulfil their mandate independently and effectively. The most marginalised 
categories of the population are still not being accorded full protection. In the area of freedom 
of expression, the country has some level of preparation. However, freedom of expression and 
the situation of the media remain a serious challenge in the current political climate. 

With  regard  to  regional  cooperation,  the  country  generally  continues  to  maintain  good 
relations  with  other  enlargement  countries  and  participated  actively  in  regional  initiatives. 
Steps  have  been  taken  to  improve  good  neighbourly  relations,  including  through  the  recent 
progress  in  implementing  the  confidence-building  measures  with  Greece.  The  'name  issue' 
needs to be resolved as a matter of urgency. 

As  regards  the  economic  criteria,  the  former  Yugoslav  Republic  of  Macedonia  has  a  good 
level  of  preparation  in  developing  a  functioning  market  economy.  Overall,  no  progress  was 
made  towards  a  functioning  market  economy  during  the  reporting  period.  Macroeconomic 
stability  was  preserved  and  the  macroeconomic  environment  strengthened  further  in  2015. 
This  was  supported  by  major  public  infrastructure  spending  and  foreign  direct  investment, 
although  signs  of  weaknesses  were  observed  in  the  first  quarter  of  2016.  Despite 
unemployment  remaining  high,  particularly  for  youth,  it  has  decreased  during  the  reporting 
period.  Certain  vulnerabilities  remain,  however,  such  as  the  low  competitiveness  of  the 
domestic private sector which is hampered by weak contract enforcement, the large informal 
economy, and difficult access to finance. The management of public finances did not improve 
and public debt increased further.  

The  economy  has  a  moderate  level  of  preparation  to  cope  with  competitive  pressures  and 
market  forces  within  the  Union.  Some  progress  was  made  to  foster  innovation  and  foreign 
investments  and  digitalisation  is  progressing  fast.  The  economy  is  poorly  diversified, 
however,  and  manufacturing  industry  produces  mainly  low  value-added  products.  The 
economy  continued  to  suffer  from  weaknesses  in  education  curricula,  low  innovation  rates 
and  significant  investment  needs,  including  in  public  infrastructure,  that  make  it  less 
competitive. 

23 

 
As regards its ability to assume the obligations of membership, the country is moderately 
prepared  in  most  areas,  including  in  the  areas  of  competition,  transport  and  energy.  Further 
efforts are needed across the board, in particular in those few areas where the country is at an 
early  stage  of  preparation,  such  as  freedom  of  movement  of  workers.  More  focus  is  also 
needed on administrative capacity and effective implementation. 

The country continued to be affected by the migration crisis. This created a substantial burden 
on  its  asylum  and  migration  system.  The  country  continued  to  cooperate  with  neighbouring 
countries and Member States and made efforts to provide shelter and humanitarian supplies, 
with EU support as well as the support of others. The country should maintain its efforts to 
ensure  effective  screening  of  refugees  and  migrants  and  address  relevant  protection  needs. 
The  country  should  also  maintain  its  efforts  to  decrease  the  number  of  unfounded  asylum 
applications lodged by its nationals in EU Member States. 

Albania 

As regards the political criteria, overcoming previous polarisation, the Parliament of Albania 
has  adopted  by  unanimity  constitutional  amendments  to  launch  a  deep  and  comprehensive 
justice system reform and the exclusion of criminal offenders from public offices. In view of 
the  next  general  elections  to  be  held  in  2017,  Albania  is  expected  to  adopt  in  due  time 
amendments to the electoral code and related reforms. These should address in particular the 
lack of impartiality and professionalism of the electoral administration. Adoption of the law 
establishing the national council for civil society provided the framework for more structured 
consultations with civil society organisations. 

Albania is moderately prepared in what concerns the reform of its public administration. The 
implementation  of  more  transparent  recruitment  procedures  of  civil  servants,  as  well  as  the 
implementation of the public administration reform and public financial management reform 
strategies have continued. Further progress is key to consolidate achievements towards a more 
efficient, depoliticised, and professional public administration. 

Albania's judicial system has some level of preparation. Constitutional amendments related to 
the organisation and functioning of the justice system were adopted. This paves the way for a 
comprehensive  and  thorough  justice  reform.  Work  on  related  implementing  legislation  also 
advanced:  a  law  on  the  re-evaluation  (vetting)  of  judges,  prosecutors  and  legal  advisors,  as 
well as a set of key laws providing for the institutional reorganisation of the judicial structures 
were  adopted.  In  addition,  around  40  other  legislative  texts  are  at  various  stages  of 
legislation. 
preparation.  Further  progress 
Administration of justice continued to be slow and inefficient; corruption remained prevalent 
across the sector.   

to  adopt  and 

is  needed 

implement 

this 

Albania has some level of preparation in the fight against corruption. A law on whistle-blower 
protection was adopted. Prosecutors and police gained increased access to national electronic 
public  registries,  with  a  view  to  exchanging  sensitive  information  and  increasing  the 
efficiency  of  investigations.  Further  progress  is  needed  to  establish  a  solid  track  record  of 
investigations, prosecutions and convictions. More efforts are needed to tackle corruption at 
high  level.  Proactive  investigations,  systematic  risk  assessments  and  inter-institutional 
cooperation need to be improved. Corruption remains prevalent in many areas and continues 
to be a serious problem. 

The country has reached some level of preparation in the fight against organised crime. Some 
progress  was  made,  in  particular  on  identifying  and  destroying  cannabis  plantations.  The 

24 

 
 
police  was  modernised  and  international  police  cooperation  intensified,  especially  with 
Europol.  However,  cooperation  between  police  and  prosecution  needs  to  be  further 
strengthened  to  dismantle  criminal  networks  more  effectively.  The  number  of  final 
convictions  in  organised  crimes  cases  is  still  low,  marking  only  a  slight  increase  in  recent 
to  organised  criminal  groups  are  not  used 
years.  Financial 
systematically and effectively. The track record of freezing and confiscating illegally acquired 
assets remains very low. 

investigations  related 

The  legal  framework  for  the  protection  of  human  rights  is  broadly  in  line  with  European 
standards.  Albania  has  ratified  most  international  human  rights  conventions.  However, 
enforcement of human rights protection mechanisms remains to be strengthened. As regards 
freedom of expression, Albania has some level of preparation / is moderately prepared. The 
overall environment is conducive to the freedom of expression, but better implementation of 
the legislation is needed. The independence of the regulatory authority and public broadcaster 
must be further strengthened, and transparency of state advertising in the media remains to be 
enhanced.  Albania  has  taken  measures  to  address  the  restitution  of  or  compensation  for 
property confiscated during the communist era. A new law providing for the setting up of a 
national  mechanism  for  compensation  is  now  in  place.  The  process  of  property  registration 
also  needs  to  advance.  Living  conditions  for  Roma  and  Egyptians3  need  to  be  improved. 
Additional  efforts  are  needed  to  develop  a  track  record  of  anti-discrimination  cases. 
Institutional mechanisms to protect the rights of the child and to tackle gender-based violence 
remain  poor.  The  legislation  on  juvenile  justice  remains  to  be  brought  in  line  with 
international standards. 

Albania has continued to have a constructive and proactive role in  regional cooperation and 
maintains good neighbourly relations in line with its commitments under the Stabilisation and 
Association Agreement.   

As regards the economic criteria, Albania is moderately prepared in developing a functioning 
market  economy.  Some  progress  was  made  in  improving  the  budget  balance,  fighting 
informality and reforming the electricity sector. Economic growth accelerated and the labour 
market situation improved, but unemployment is still high. Public debt is high and has not yet 
started  decreasing,  while  the  recurrent  underexecution  of  government  spending  on 
investments  persists.  The  financial  sector  is  stable.  However,  the  banking  sector  is  still 
burdened  with  non-performing  loans  and  credit  is  growing  slowly.  Business-relevant 
regulations  are  cumbersome  and  shortcomings  in  the  rule  of  law  continue  to  deter 
investments. The ongoing justice reform is expected to have a material impact on the business 
environment. 

Albania  has  some  level  of  preparation  concerning  its  capacity  to  cope  with  competitive 
pressure and market forces within the Union. Some progress was made particularly as regards 
improving  higher  and  vocational  education.  However,  the  quality  of  education  needs  to  be 
raised at all levels to better equip people with skills and knowledge in line with labour market 
needs.  Efforts  have  started  for  prioritising  infrastructure  investments,  but  gaps  in  transport, 
energy and digital infrastructure still hinder competitiveness and constrain trade. International 
trade  is  below  potential  and  it  is  sectorally  concentrated  making  the  economy  more 
vulnerable. Capacity for research, development and innovation remains low.    

Albania continued aligning its legislation to EU requirements in a number of areas, enhancing 
its  ability  to  take  on  the  obligations  of  membership.  In  many  areas,  the  country  is 

3 All these groups are considered under the wider "Roma" umbrella term under the EU Framework for National 

Roma Integration Strategies. 

25 

 
                                                            
moderately prepared, such as in financial control, or has some level of preparation, including 
in the areas of public procurement and statistics. Albania will need to continue its efforts as 
regards  the  overall  preparations  for  adopting  and  implementing  the  EU  acquis.  It  should 
continue work on the development of the transport and energy networks, also with a view to 
improving  connectivity  throughout  the  region.  The  administrative  capacity  and  professional 
standards  of  bodies  charged  with  the  implementation  of  the  acquis  need  to  be  strengthened 
and  the  independence  of  regulatory  bodies  safeguarded.  Enhancing  transparency  and 
accountability, in particular ensuring the effective, efficient and transparent functioning of the 
public  procurement  system  and  public  finance  management,  remains  essential.  Albania  has 
continued  to  fully  align  with  all EU  common  foreign  and  security  policy  positions  and 
declarations. 

The number of unfounded asylum applications lodged by Albanian nationals to EU Member 
States and Schengen associated countries has remained high. Albania should take immediate 
and determined action, including in the framework of the post-visa liberalisation monitoring 
mechanism, to effectively address this phenomenon. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina 

As  regards  the  political  criteria,  the  electoral  legislation  was  improved,  with  a  number  of 
OSCE-ODIHR recommendations being followed and local elections organised broadly in an 
orderly  manner,  despite  incidents  in  some  municipalities  which  need  to  be  investigated. 
Despite efforts to resolve the Mostar issue, elections could not take place there this year. The 
Bosnia and Herzegovina Parliamentary Assembly and the entities’ parliaments made progress 
towards adopting outstanding reform priorities, in particular those stemming from the Reform 
Agenda.  Cooperation  between  state-level,  entity-level  and  Brčko  district  parliaments  has 
improved. However their role and capacities in the EU integration process need to be further 
improved. Cooperation between the BiH  Council of Ministers and the entities' governments 
was effective as regards the Reform Agenda, the implementation of which needs to continue. 
The  coordination  mechanism  on  EU  matters  was  adopted  by  the  Council  of  Ministers  in 
August. A strategic programme for the country’s legal approximation with the EU acquis has 
yet to be adopted.  

Bosnia  and  Herzegovina’s  constitution  remains  in  breach  of  the  European  Convention  on 
Human Rights, as per the ruling in the Sejdić-Finci case. Constitutional Court decisions have 
yet to be fully enforced throughout the country.  

While some progress has been made in establishing institutional mechanisms for cooperation 
between  governments  and  civil  society  organisations  (CSOs),  a  strategic  framework  for 
cooperation with civil society needs to be developed.  

Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  is  at  an  early  stage  with  the  reform  of  its  public  administration. 
Backsliding has been recorded with the changes to the Federation entity's legal framework for 
the  civil  service,  increasing  the  risk  of  politicisation.  A  harmonised  approach  to  policy 
development  and  coordination  between  different  parts  of  the  administration  is  still  largely 
lacking.  The  adoption  of  a  new  strategic  framework  for  public  administration,  as  well  as 
a strategy on public financial management are needed. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s justice system has some level of preparation. Some progress was 
made  on  accountability  and  integrity.  The  action  plan  needed  to  implement  the  2014-2018 
justice  sector  reform  strategy  has  yet  to  be  adopted.  Politically  motivated  threats  on  the 

26 

 
 
judiciary  by some  politicians in  the country  continued. Judicial independence remains to  be 
strengthened. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina has some level of preparation in the fight against corruption. Some 
progress was made with the adoption of action plans at various levels of governance but their 
fragmentation  makes  implementation  less  effective.  Corruption  remains  prevalent  in  many 
areas  and  continues  to  be  a  serious  problem.  The  declared  political  commitment  on  this 
subject did not translate into concrete results. 

Regarding  the  fight  against  organised  crime,  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  has  some  level  of 
preparation. Some progress was made notably to improve inter-agency cooperation. However, 
financial investigations need to be stepped up. Fighting organised crime remains fundamental 
to countering criminal infiltration of the political, legal and economic system of the country. 
Bosnia and Herzegovina still needs to meet international standards on anti-money laundering 
and  countering  the  financing  of  terrorism.  Bosnian  and  Herzegovina  has  been  seriously 
affected  by  the  phenomenon  of  foreign  terrorist  fighters  and  radicalisation.  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina has already taken important measures to deal with this problem which needs to 
be complemented by further steps to identify, prevent and disrupt the flow of foreign terrorist 
fighters travelling to conflict areas such as Iraq and Syria.  

More  work  is  required  addressing  human  rights  and  minorities’  issues.  Some  progress  was 
achieved  in  particular  with  the  adoption  of  amendments  to  the  anti-discrimination  law.  The 
strategic,  legal,  institutional  and  policy  frameworks  for  the  observance  of  human  rights 
remain  in  overall  need  of  substantial  improvement.  There  is  some  level  of  preparation  on 
freedom  of  expression.  However,  no  progress  was  made  in  this  area.  Cases  of  political 
pressure  and  intimidation  against  journalists  need  adequate  legal  follow  up.  The  financial 
stability of the public broadcasting system remains to be addressed, as well as the issue of the 
lack of transparency of media ownership.  

With regard to regional cooperation, the country continued to participate actively in regional 
initiatives.  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  took  over  the  chairmanship  of  the  Central  European 
Initiative in January.   

As  regards  the  economic  criteria,  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina  is  still  at  an  early  stage  in 
developing a functioning market economy. Some progress has been made in modernising the 
labour  legislation,  improving  the  business  environment  and  addressing  weaknesses  in  the 
financial sector in the framework of the agreed Reform Agenda. However, the public sector is 
inefficient and private sector development is slow. Strong and continuing political support for 
the swift implementation of much-needed structural reforms, in line with the agreed Reform 
Agenda, will be key. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina is at an early stage in building the capacity to cope with competitive 
pressure  and  market  forces  within  the  Union.  There  was  no  progress  in  improving  the 
country's competitiveness, but implementation of Reform Agenda measures is ongoing.  

Regarding approximation with European standards, there is some level of preparation in the 
fields  of  public  procurement  and  internal  market.  The  country  achieved  some  level  of 
preparation  in  the  transport  area;  the  adoption  of  a  Framework  Transport  Strategy  at  State-
level in July is a step forward towards the country benefitting from the connectivity agenda. 
Country-wide  strategies  in  the  areas  of  agriculture,  energy  and  environment  are  yet  to  be 
adopted.  Further  sustained  efforts  are  also  needed  as  regards  justice,  freedom  and  security 
matters,  the  competition  area,  industry  and  SMEs,  agriculture,  environment  and  climate 
change policies, energy, and information society and media. The results of the population and 

27 

 
housing  census  conducted  in  October  2013  were  published  on  30  June  2016,  in  line  with 
international standards and recommendations.  

Kosovo 

As  concerns  the  political  criteria,  the  polarisation  between  government  and  opposition 
continued. Normal parliamentary functioning was prevented for parts of the reporting period, 
including  through  the  use  of  violent  means  by  opposition  members.  All  political  parties 
should  show  responsibility  and  re-engage  in  a  constructive  dialogue,  with  parliament  as  the 
key  forum  for  political  debate.  The  recent  return  of  opposition  members  to  parliamentary 
activities is a welcome step.  

Kosovo institutions fulfilled the remaining obligations on the establishment of the Specialist 
Chambers and Specialist Prosecution Office to investigate allegations of international crimes 
committed during and after the 1999 conflict. The procedures on the bilateral agreement with 
the host country of the Specialist Chambers (the Netherlands) were finalised. The mandate of 
EULEX was extended until June 2018. 

The assembly completed most of the outstanding appointments to independent institutions and 
agencies. However, appointments were  often subject to  political influence.  This  undermines 
the  independent  functioning  and  effective  management  of  these  bodies.  Greater  efforts  are 
needed to ensure that appointments are based on merit. 

There is some level of preparation in the area of public administration reform. Good progress 
included  the  adoption  of  a  comprehensive  public  financial  management  strategy  and  of  the 
law  on  general  administrative  procedures.  The  continued  politicisation  of  the  public 
administration,  however,  remains  a  serious  concern.  The  organisation  of  the  state 
administration  is  fragmented  and  does  not  ensure  effective  lines  of  accountability,  and  the 
overlap  of  responsibilities  of  government  agencies  needs  to  be  addressed.  Parliamentary 
oversight  of  government  activities  should  increase.  The  recommendations  of  oversight 
institutions should be followed, to ensure improved governance and accountability. 

Kosovo's judicial system is at an early stage. Important positive steps have been taken during 
the reporting period with the adoption of amendments to the constitution and most secondary 
legislation necessary to implement the 2015 justice package laws. Kosovo has also appointed 
most  members  of  key  institutions  and  continued  to  increase  its  clearance  rate  of  cases. 
However,  administration  of  justice  is  slow  and  inefficient,  and  there  is  insufficient 
accountability of judicial officials. The judiciary is still vulnerable to undue political influence 
and rule of law institutions suffer from lack of funding and human resources. 

Kosovo  is  at  an  early  stage/has  some  level  of  preparation  in  the  fight  against  corruption. 
Kosovo  has  strengthened  its  institutional  capacities  to  fight corruption  and  organised  crime, 
with  the  establishment  of  multi-disciplinary  investigative  teams,  the  set-up  of  a  tracking 
mechanism  for  high  level  corruption  and  organised  crime  cases,  as  well  as  the  fostering  of 
serious crime department of basic courts. This has led to an increased number of high-level 
cases  being  investigated  and  prosecuted.  However,  corruption  remains  prevalent  in  many 
areas  and  continues  to  be  a  very  serious  problem.  A  stronger  political  will  to  tackle  this  in 
a comprehensive manner is necessary. 

Kosovo is at an early stage in the fight against organised crime. The number of investigations 
and final convictions remains low. Gaps in the legislation remain and enforcement needs to be 
improved in particular for money laundering, confiscation and seizure of assets, and financial 
investigation.  Undue  influence  over  investigations  and  the  lack  of  strategic  political 

28 

 
 
commitment hamper the fight against organised crime. Kosovo continued its efforts to fight 
terrorism, but still faces challenges in this area. 

Some progress was made in the area of human rights, with steps taken to implement the 2015 
package  of  human  rights  laws  and  declarations  of  support  for  the  rights  of  LGBTI  persons. 
However,  implementation  continues  to  be  hindered  by  a  lack  of  resources  and  political 
commitment,  in  particular  at  local  level.  More  needs  to  be  done  to  effectively  guarantee 
property  rights  and  address  the  issues  of  return  and  reintegration  of  displaced  persons, 
protection of cultural heritage and against gender-based violence. The protection of the rights 
of  persons  belonging  to  minorities  and  persons  with  disabilities  need  to  be  significantly 
strengthened.  Kosovo  has  some  level  of  preparation  in  the  area  of  freedom  of  expression. 
There have been worrying developments during the reporting period, including a number of 
threats against journalists. The assembly shows limited commitment to finding a solution for 
sustainable funding of the public broadcaster, leaving it vulnerable to political pressure. There 
were no legislative developments on the regulation of media ownership and transparency.  

Regarding the  normalisation  of  relations  with  Serbia,  Kosovo  remained  committed  to  the 
implementation  of  the  agreements  reached  in  the  EU-facilitated  dialogue.  Progress  was 
limited,  also  due  to  the  electoral  process  in  Serbia  and  the  domestic  situation  in  Kosovo. 
However,  momentum  was  regained  in  August  2016  with  the  start  of  the  work  on  the 
Mitrovica/Mitrovicë  bridge  and  freedom  of  movement.  Continued  efforts  are  needed  to 
implement  the  agreements  already  reached.  The  steps  taken  should  have  a  positive  and 
concrete impact on the everyday life of citizens in both Kosovo and Serbia. 

As  regards  the  economic  criteria,  Kosovo  is  at  an  early  stage  in  developing  a  functioning 
market  economy.  Some  progress  was  made,  particularly  on  supporting  export-oriented 
businesses, improving contract enforcement, especially within the financial sector, and access 
to finance. However, the fiscally unsustainable decisions related to war-veterans' benefits may 
have  a  negative  effect  on  the  macroeconomic  stability  of  Kosovo  and  its  relations  with 
international financial institutions. The persistent trade deficit reflects a weak production base 
and poor international competitiveness. Reliance on remittances and the widespread informal 
economy  additionally  decrease  employment  incentives,  resulting  in  low  labour  force 
participation,  especially  among  women,  and  high  unemployment  rates,  in  particular  among 
young and unskilled workers.  

Kosovo  is  at  an  early  stage  in  building  the  capacity to  cope  with  competitive  pressures  and 
market forces within the Union. No progress was made on improving the quality of education, 
which is a key driver for improving long-term growth and competitiveness. 

Kosovo  is  at  an  early  stage  of  alignment  with  European  standards.  Legislative  alignment 
has continued in some areas but implementation is weak. Some progress was made in the area 
of  public  procurement  and  competition.  Good  progress  was  made  in  the  area  of  customs, 
especially in fighting corruption, collecting revenue and reducing the administrative costs of 
exports, but Kosovo should step up the fight against the informal economy and tax evasion. 
The  energy  sector  continues  to  face  problems,  with  no  progress  having  been  made  on 
decommissioning  the  Kosovo  A  power  plant  or  refurbishing  Kosovo  B,  and  very  little 
progress made on renewable energy. 

29 

 
 
 
ANNEX 2 –   KEY STATISTICS 

STATISTICAL DATA (as of 
5.10.2016) 

Demography 

Total population (thousands) 

Share of 15–64 in total 
population (%) 

Crude rate of natural 
population change (per 1 000 
inhabitants) 
Life expectancy at birth, males 
(years)  

Life expectancy at birth, 
females (years)  

Labour market 
Economic activity rate for 
persons aged 20–64: 
proportion of the population 
aged 20–64 that is 
economically active (%) 
Economic activity rate for 
males aged 20–64: proportion 
of the male population aged 
20–64 that is economically 
active (%) 
Economic activity rate for 
females aged 20–64: 
proportion of the female 
population aged 20–64 that is 
economically active (%) 
Employment rates, aged 20–
64 (% of the population) 

Total 
Males 
Females 

Montenegro 

Note 
1) 

2014 
621.5 

2015 
622.1 

The former 
Yugoslav Republic 
of Macedonia 
2014 
2 065.8 

2015 

2014 

2 069.2  2 895.0e 

68.1 

67.8 

70.8 

70.5 

68.8e 

Albania 

Serbia 

Turkey 

Bosnia and 
Herzegovina 

Kosovo * 

EU-28 

2015 
2 892.3
e 
69.0 

2014 

2015 

7 149.2e  7 114.4 

2014 
76 668 

2015 
77 696 

2014 
3 827.3e 

67.6 

67.1 

67.7 

67.8 

: 

2015 
3 819.
5e 
: 

2014 
1 804.
9e 
: 

2015 
1772.1p 

: 

2014 
506 944
p 
65.8p 

2015 
508 293
bp 
65.5bp 

2.4 

1.7 

1.9 

1.3e 

5.2e 

3.7e 

-4.9 

-5.4 

12.3 

11.8 

-1.5p 

74.1 

78.9 

: 

: 

73.5 

77.5 

: 

: 

76.4e 

80.3e 

: 

: 

72.8 

78.0 

: 

: 

75.4 

80.9 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

13.2e 

12.4be 

0.4p 

-0.3bp 

: 

: 

: 

: 

78.1p 

83.6p 

: 

: 

Note 

2014 
67.6 

2015 
68.5 

2014 
70.8 

2015 
70.2 

2014 
68.6e 

2015 
71.3e 

2014 
68.0b 

2015 
68.1 

2014 
58.9 

2015 
59.9 

2014 
59.2 

2015 
59.2 

2014 
47.7 

2015 
42.8 

2014 
76.8 

2015 
77.1 

74.5 

74.9 

84.5 

83.8 

80.5e 

81.8e 

76.6b 

76.7 

82.2 

82.7 

72.4 

71.9 

71.4 

65.1 

83.2 

83.4 

60.7 

62.1 

56.8 

56.2 

57.3e 

61.1e 

59.5b 

59.5 

35.8 

37.3 

46.0 

46.3 

24.2 

20.4 

70.5 

70.8 

55.6 
61.4 
49.4 

56.7 
61.9 
51.5 

51.3 
61.6 
40.8 

51.9 
61.5 
42.1 

56.6e 
65.2e 
48.5e 

59.3e 
68.1e 
50.7e 

54.8b 
62.5b 
47.2b 

56.0 
63.7 
48.3 

53.2 
75.0 
31.6 

53.9 
75.3 
32.6 

43.2 
54.6 
31.9 

43.2 
53.9 
32.4 

31.3 
48.4 
14.5 

29.1 
44.9 
13.2 

69.2 
75.0 
63.4 

70 
75.8 
64.2 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Montenegro 

The former 
Yugoslav Republic 
of Macedonia 

17.7 

19.1 

22.6 

23.4 

: 

: 

: 

: 

Albania 

Serbia 

Turkey 

Bosnia and 
Herzegovina 

Kosovo * 

EU-28 

30.9e 

29.6 

20.7 

20.1 

24.9 

24.0 

26.1 

27.7 

34.5e 

32.8 

25.6 

24.6 

28.5 

28.0 

31.8 

32.8 

: 

: 

: 

: 

12.5 

12.0 

15.4 

14.8 

2) 

2) 
2) 
2) 
3) 

5.7 

7.7 

18.5 

17.9 

42.7e 

41.3e 

19.9b 

19.4 

21.1 

20.6 

17.1 

17.9 

2.6 

2.3 

4.7 

4.5 

11.1 
6.5 
76.7 
32.8 

10.8 
6.6 
74.8 
32.4 

23.4 
7.0 
51.1 
: 

23.4 
7.1 
51.6 
: 

11.0e 
6.4e 
39.4e 
17.5e 

11.6e 
6.9e 
40.2 
16.7e 

20.2b 
4.5b 
55.4b 
31.4b 

19.9 
4.5 
56.1 
29.7 

20.5 
7.4 
51.0 
13.1b 

20.0 
7.2 
52.2 
13.5 

22.1 
7.9 
52.7 
31.9 

22.0 
7.5 
52.4 
31.2 

17.7 
10.9 
67.2 
31.4s 

18.7 
9.5 
68.3 
32.6 

17.4 
6.8 
71.0 
: 

17.3 
6.8 
71.3 
: 

3) 

48.2 

46.8 

: 

: 

82.5e 

83.3e 

68.6b 

70.3 

86.9b 

86.5 

63.1 

63.2 

68.6s 

67.4 

: 

: 

4) 
4) 
4) 
4) 
4) 
5) 

18.0 
17.8 
18.2 
35.8 
14.0 
479.0 

17.5 
17.7 
17.3 
37.6 
13.6 
: 

28.0 
27.7 
28.6 
53.1 
23.4 
: 

26.1 
26.7 
25.1 
47.3 
21.3 
: 

17.5e 
19.2e 
15.2e 
39.0e 
11.2e 
378.8 

17.1e 
17.1e 
17.1e 
39.8e 
11.3e 
386.4 

19.2b 
18.3b 
20.3b 
47.4b 
12.8b 
523.6 

17.6 
16.8 
18.7 
43.2 
11.3 
506.4 

9.9 
9.1 
11.9 
17.8 
2.0 
: 

10.3 
9.3 
12.6 
18.4 
2.2 
: 

27.6 
25.3 
31.2 
62.7 
23.4 
424.4 

27.9 
25.9 
30.9 
62.3 
22.8 
424.4 

35.3 
33.1 
41.6 
61.0 
26.1 
: 

32.9 
31.8 
36.6 
57.7 
23.8 
: 

10.2 
10.1 
10.3 
22.2 
5.0 
: 

9.4 
9.3 
9.5 
20.4 
4.5 
: 

Note 

2014 
5.1 

2015 
5.7 

2014 
12.5 

2015 
11.3p 

2014 
26.0e 

2015 
21.3e 

2014 
8.5 

2015 
7.5 

2014 
38.3 

2015 
36.7 

2014 
25.2 

2015 
26.3 

2014 
: 

2015 
: 

2014 
11.2 

2015 
11.0 

: 

: 

: 

: 

3.3 

: 

4.2 

: 

5.1 

: 

: 

: 

4.4 

: 

: 

: 

Persons aged 15-24 not in 
employment, education or 
training, % of the population in 
the age group 
Persons aged 15-29 not in 
employment, education or 
training, % of the population in 
the age group 
Employment by main 
sectors 
Agriculture, forestry and 
fisheries (%) 

Industry (%) 
Construction (%) 
Services (%) 
People employed in the public 
sector as a share of total 
employment, persons aged 
20–64 (%) 
People employed in the 
private sector as a share of 
total employment, persons 
aged 20–64 (%) 
Unemployment rates (% of 
the labour force) 

Total 
Males 
Females 
Youth, aged 15–24 
Long-term (>12 months) 
Average nominal monthly 
wages and salaries (EUR) 

Education 
Early leavers from education 
and training: percentage of the 
population aged 18–24 with at 
most a lower secondary 
education and not in further 
education or training (%) 
Public expenditure on 
education relative to GDP (%) 

31 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Montenegro 

The former 
Yugoslav Republic 
of Macedonia 

Albania 

Serbia 

Turkey 

Bosnia and 
Herzegovina 

Kosovo * 

EU-28 

1.1 

6.6 

1.2 

6.9 

1.0 

6.3 

86.3 

80.6 

87.8 

85.3 

84.7 

75.7 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

13.7 

30.9e 

24.9e 

10.1b 

8.6 

12.6 

11.5 

6.5 

6.2 

20.7 

17.9 

: 

: 

31.0e 

27.1e 

10.2b 

9.3 

6.9 

7.1 

5.8 

5.6 

18.8 

14.9 

30.7e 

22.6e 

10.0b 

7.9 

17.9 

15.7 

7.2 

6.9 

22.9 

21.3 

76.1 

49.7e 

52.4e 

82.3b 

83.2 

70.0 

69.9 

85.6 

86.3 

68.2 

67.3 

: 

: 

55.9e 

57.9e 

84.8b 

84.5 

76.7 

76.9 

89.6 

88.6 

71.8 

72.4 

43.5e 

46.8e 

79.7b 

81.7 

63.8 

63.3 

81.2 

83.5 

64.0 

61.5 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

28.3 

31.0 

24.9 

28.6 

16.7e 

22.1e 

27.0b 

28.9 

21.5 

23.5 

18.9 

17.2 

14.8 

17.2 

37.8 

38.6 

25.3 

32.9 

21.4 

23.1 

14.0e 

19.6e 

21.5b 

24.2 

23.4 

25.0 

15.2 

13.4 

16.6 

19.5 

33.4 

33.9 

31.3 

32.2 

28.7 

34.5 

19.2e 

24.7e 

32.8b 

33.7 

19.6 

22.1 

23.2 

21.3 

13.0 

14.7 

42.2 

43.3 

Note 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

6) 
6) 
6) 

6) 

3.5 
5 600 
11 200 

3.6 
5 800 
11 800 

8.6 
4 100 
10 100 

9.1p 
4 400p 
10 600 

10.0p 
3 400 
8 300 

10.3p 
3 600 
8 600 

33.3 
4 700 
10 200 

33.5 
4 700 
10 300 

601.5 
7 800 
14 600 

645.4 
8 300 
15 100 

14.0 
3 600 
8 000 

14.6 
3 800 
8 300 

5.6 
3 100 
: 

41 

41 

37 

37 

30 

30 

37 

36 

53 

53 

29 

29 

: 

6) 

1.8 

3.4 

3.5p 

3.7e 

1.8p 

2.8p 

-1.8 

0.8 

3.0 

4.0 

1.1 

: 

1.2 

: 
: 
: 

: 

: 

13 987.3  14 693.0 
28 800 
27 500 
28 700 
27 500 

- 

- 

1.5 

2.2 

Percentage of the population 
aged 20-24 with no or 
elementary education, total 

Percentage of the population 
aged 20-24 with no or 
elementary education, males 

Percentage of the population 
aged 20-24 with no or 
elementary education, females 

Percentage of the population 
aged 20-24 with secondary 
education, total 
Percentage of the population 
aged 20-24 with secondary 
education, males 
Percentage of the population 
aged 20-24 with secondary 
education, females 

Percentage of the population 
aged 30-34 with tertiary 
education, total 
Percentage of the population 
aged 30-34 with tertiary 
education, males 
Percentage of the population 
aged 30-34 with tertiary 
education, females 

National accounts 
Gross domestic product 
In current prices (EUR billion) 
Per capita (EUR) 
In purchasing power 
standards (PPS) per capita 

In purchasing power 
standards (PPS) per capita, 
relative to the EU average 
(EU-28 = 100) 
Real (volume) annual rate of 
change, compared with the 
previous year (%) 

32 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Montenegro 

The former 
Yugoslav Republic 
of Macedonia 

Albania 

Serbia 

Turkey 

Bosnia and 
Herzegovina 

Kosovo * 

EU-28 

Gross value added by main 
sectors 
Agriculture, forestry and 
fisheries (%) 

Industry (%) 
Construction (%) 
Services (%) 

6) 

6) 
6) 
6) 

10.0 

9.8 

11.7 

11.4p 

22.9p 

22.1p 

9.3 

8.2 

8.0 

8.5 

7.1 

13.5 
4.2 
72.3 

12.9 
4.6 
72.7 

18.3 
8.0 
62.0 

18.7p 
7.9p 
62.0p 

14.7p 
10.0p 
52.4p 

14.6p 
10.8p 
52.5p 

25.1 
5.1 
60.5 

25.9 
5.5 
60.4 

22.0 
5.1 
64.9 

21.5 
5.0 
65.0 

21.3 
4.7 
66.9 

: 

: 
: 
: 

14.3 

19.4 
7.3 
59.0 

: 

: 
: 
: 

Balance of payments 
Net (inward - outward) foreign 
direct investment (FDI) (million 
euro) 
Net (inward - outward) foreign 
direct investment (FDI) (% of 
GDP) 
Net (inward - outward) foreign 
direct investment (FDI) in 
relation to EU-28 (million euro) 

Net (inward - outward) foreign 
direct investment (FDI) in 
relation to EU-28 (% of GDP) 

Note 
13) 

2014 
353.9 

2015 
619.3 

2014 
197.4 

2015 
170.7 

2014 
811.5 

2015 
818.4 

2014 
1 236.3 

2015 
1 803.8 

2014 
4 121.9 

2015 
10 641.7 

2014 
386.1 

2015 
221.2 

2014 
123.8 

2015 
287.3 

13) 

10.2 

17.1 

2.3 

1.9p 

8.1p 

8.0p 

3.7 

5.4 

0.7 

1.6 

2.8 

1.5 

2.2 

: 

-0.2 

14) 

102.5 

403.0 

10.8 

-169.2 

14) 

3.0 

11.1 

0.1 

-1.9 

1 073.9 

1 480.4 

1 509.5 

4 809.2 

3.2 

4.4 

0.3 

0.7 

: 

: 

: 

: 

1.5 

82.4 

101.3 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

Remittances as % of GDP 

15) 

1.3 

: 

2.2p 

2.1e 

7.8 

8.7 

0.1 

0.1 

8.5 

8.3 

: 

External trade in goods 
International trade in goods 
Share of exports to EU-28 
countries in value of total 
exports (%) 
Share of imports from EU-28 
countries in value of total 
imports (%) 
Trade balance (EUR million) 
International trade in goods 
and services relative to GDP 

Note 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

35.8 

35.7 

76.5 

77.2 

77.4 

75.5 

65.7 

67.0 

43.5 

44.5 

72.1 

71.6 

30.2 

32.6 

45.8 

41.3 

63.4 

62.1 

61.1 

61.8 

57.1 

57.3 

36.7 

38.0 

58.9 

60.8 

42.6 

42.2 

- 

- 

- 

- 

-1 451 

-1 524 

-1 758 

-1 726 

-2 114 

-2 154 

-2 950 

-2 985 

-63 685 

-56 977 

-3 844 

-3 510 

-2 214 

-2 309 

11 139 

64 169 

Imports (% of GDP) 
Exports (% of GDP) 

6) 
6) 

60.0 
40.1 

61.1 
42.5 

64.9 
47.7 

65.0p 
48.8p 

47.2p 
28.2p 

: 
: 

54.2 
43.4 

56.4 
46.7 

32.1 
27.9 

30.8 
28.0 

: 
: 

: 
: 

50.6 
19.6 

: 
: 

40.4 
43.1 

40.5 
43.8 

33 

1.6 

1.5 

19.1 
5.4 
73.9 

2014 
-
22 872.0 

19.2 
5.4 
73.9 

2015 
: 

: 

- 

- 

: 

- 

- 

0.1 

: 

: 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Montenegro 

The former 
Yugoslav Republic 
of Macedonia 

Albania 

Serbia 

Turkey 

Bosnia and 
Herzegovina 

Kosovo * 

EU-28 

Note 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

2014 

2015 

7) 

-3.1 

7.7 

-4.2 

-3.5 

-5.2 

-4.0 

-6.7 

-3.8 

0.4 

1.7 

-2.0 

0.7 

: 

: 

-3.0 

-2.4 

7) 8) 

56.7 

63.3 

38.2 

38.0 

71.8 

72.5 

72.4 

76.4 

34.5 

31.3 

41.6 

41.9 

10.5 

12.8 

86.8 

85.2 

Note 

2014 
-0.7 

2015 
1.5 

2014 
-0.3 

2015 
-0.3 

2014 
0.7 

2015 
2.0 

2014 
2.9 

2015 
1.9 

2014 
8.9 

2015 
7.7 

2014 
-0.9 

2015 
-1.0 

2014 
0.4 

2015 
-0.5 

2014 
0.5 

2015 
0.0 

9) 

: 

: 

70.3p 

69.9p 

69.6 

73.9 

77.1 

80.1 

55.0 

56.4 

: 

: 

32.3 

10) 

9.22 

8.53 

3.75 

3.75 

7.66 

7.77 

10.50 

6.50 

11.68 

10.79 

6.32 

5.74 

10.70 

11) 

1.86 

1.23 

0.50 

0.25 

1.92 

1.35 

5.50 

2.50 

7.75 

7.27 

0.09 

0.09 

1.07 

: 

: 

: 

12) 

545 

674 

2 436 

2 262 

2 192 

2 880 

9 907 

10 378 

95 824 

99 620 

4 001 

4 400 

746 

861 

12) 

3.2 

3.7 

5.3 

4.6 

5.6 

7.6 

6.6 

6.6 

5.9 

6.0 

6.1 

6.8 

3.2 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

: 

Note 

2014 
81.8 

2015 
88.3 

2014 
112.5 

2015 
118.0 

2014 
139.2 

2015 
142.4 

2014 
98.8 

2015 
107.1 

2014 
120.5 

2015 
124.3 

2014 
103.9 

2015 
107.1 

2014 
: 

2015 
: 

2014 
101.7 

2015 
103.9 

Note 

2014 
18.1 

2015 
18.1 

2014 
27.2 

2015 
27.2 

2014 
12.0 

2015 
13.2s 

2014 
49.3 

2015 
48.6s 

2014 
12.9 

2015 
12.9 

2014 
20.1 

2015 
20.1 

2014 
30.6 

2015 
30.6 

2014 
: 

2015 
: 

0 

0 

259 

259 

: 

: 

607 

693 

2 155 

2 159 

128 

128 

80 

80 

: 

: 

Note 
16) 

2014 
5.4 

2015 
4.2 

2014 
8.5 

2015 
6.4 

2014 
1.3 

2015 
0.7 

2014 
5.3 

2015 
4.7 

2014 
1.8 

2015 
1.4 

2014 
6.8 

2015 
5.3 

2014 
6.9 

2015 
: 

2014 
2.4 

2015 
1.7 

Public finance 
Government finance 
statistics, relative to GDP 

** General government 
surplus (+) / deficit (–) (%) 

** General government debt 
(%) 

Financial indicators 
Annual change in consumer 
prices (%) 

Total external debt, relative to 
GDP (%) 

Lending interest rate (one 
year), per annum (%) 

Deposit interest rate (one 
year), per annum (%) 

Value of reserve assets 
(including gold) (million euro) 

International reserves - 
equivalence in months of 
imports 

Business 
Industrial production index 
(2010 = 100) 

Infrastructure 
Density of railway network 
(lines in operation per 
thousand km²) 
Length of motorways 
(kilometres) 

Energy 
Net energy imports in relation 
to GDP 

34 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
: = not available 
b = break in series 
e = estimated value 
p = provisional 
s = Eurostat estimate 
- = not applicable 

* = This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence. 
** = The government deficit and debt data of enlargement countries are published on an "as is" basis and without any assurance as regards their quality and adherence to ESA rules. 

  Footnotes: 

1)  Bosnia and Herzegovina: mid-year population. 
2)  Albania: the sum of the shares does not sum to 100% due to cases where persons have not or can not be classified to a particular activity. 
3)  Bosnia and Herzegovina: the shares do not sum to 100% because other types of ownership are excluded. Montenegro: excludes NGOs. 
4)  Turkey: unemployment based on 4 weeks criterion + using only active jobs search methods. 
5)  Serbia, 2014: wages and salaries paid to employees of legal entities and of unincorporated enterprises. Bosnia and Herzegovina: net salary. 
6)  Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina: based on ESA 1995. 
7)  EU-28: based on ESA 2010. 
8)  The value of GDP is obtained from the Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2016–2018 (April 2015). 
9)  The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: based on balance of payments manual 6th edition. 
10)  Albania: average weighted rate applied to new 12-month loans over the respective month, on 12-month maturity. Bosnia and Herzegovina: short-term lending rates in national 

currency to non-financial corporations (weighted average). Montenegro: weighted average effective interest rate, outstanding amounts, annual. The former Yugoslav Republic of 
Macedonia: end of year (31 December). Kosovo: includes disbursement fee charged by banks. 

11)  Albania: deposit interest rate represents the average weighted rate for newly accepted deposits over the respective month, on 12-month maturity. Bosnia and Herzegovina: demand 
deposit rates in national currency of households (weighted average). Montenegro: weighted average effective interest rate, outstanding amounts, annual. The former Yugoslav 
Republic of Macedonia: end of year (31 December). Turkey: overnight deposit facility. Kosovo: includes disbursement fee charged by banks. 

12)  The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: end of year (31 December). 
13)  The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and the EU-28: based on balance of payments manual 6th edition. 
14)  The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo: based on balance of payments manual 6th edition. 
15)  The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the EU-28: based on balance of payments manual 6th edition. 
16)  Montenegro, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Turkey and Kosovo: Eurostat calculations.