COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 2025 Rule of Law Report Country Chapter on the rule of law situation in North Macedonia Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions 2025 Rule of Law Report The rule of law situation in the European Union
Date: 2025-07-08
Institutions: European Commission, Secretariat-General
Subjects: North Macedonia, administrative transparency, corruption, democracy, freedom of the press, human rights, independence of the judiciary, pluralism in the media, rule of law, whistleblowing

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Strasbourg, 8.7.2025  SWD(2025) 930 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 2025 Rule of Law Report                                 Country Chapter on the rule of law situation in North Macedonia Accompanying the document Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions 2025 Rule of Law Report                                   The rule of law situation in the European Union {COM(2025) 900 final} - {SWD(2025) 901 final} - {SWD(2025) 902 final} - {SWD(2025) 903 final} - {SWD(2025) 904 final} - {SWD(2025) 905 final} - {SWD(2025) 906 final} - {SWD(2025) 907 final} - {SWD(2025) 908 final} - {SWD(2025) 909 final} - {SWD(2025) 910 final} - {SWD(2025) 911 final} - {SWD(2025) 912 final} - {SWD(2025) 913 final} - {SWD(2025) 914 final} - {SWD(2025) 915 final} - {SWD(2025) 916 final} - {SWD(2025) 917 final} - {SWD(2025) 918 final} - {SWD(2025) 919 final} - {SWD(2025) 920 final} - {SWD(2025) 921 final} - {SWD(2025) 922 final} - {SWD(2025) 923 final} - {SWD(2025) 924 final} - {SWD(2025) 925 final} - {SWD(2025) 926 final} - {SWD(2025) 927 final} - {SWD(2025) 928 final} - {SWD(2025) 929 final} - {SWD(2025) 931 final}  
 
 
ABSTRACT 

North Macedonia continued implementing its judicial reform. Interference and pressure from 
other  State  branches  raise  serious  concerns  about  judicial  independence.  The  dismissal 
procedure  launched  against  the  Chief  Prosecutor  exposed  shortcomings  in  the  rules  for  the 
dismissal  and  a  risk  of  politicisation.  Measures  were  taken  across  the  judiciary  to  enhance 
transparency,  while  some  concerns  remain  regarding  appointment  decisions.  Legislative 
drafting processes are ongoing regarding the independence of the judiciary and the autonomy 
of  the  public  prosecution  service.  The  limited  financial  resources  allocated  to  the  judiciary 
continue  to  affect  its  financial  autonomy.  While  the  lack  of  human  resources  was  partly 
mitigated by new recruitments, shortages of staff remain a concern. Efforts to further improve 
the  digital  tools  for  case  management  and  court  statistics  continue,  but  challenges  remain, 
such as  with  outdated infrastructure.  The efficiency of the judiciary has overall declined as 
the length of proceedings increased for almost all case categories.  

Implementation  of  the  national  anti-corruption  strategy  continues  to  be  insufficient  overall. 
Despite recent efforts in investigating and prosecuting corruption, delays in court proceedings 
and resource constraints continue to hinder the establishment of a robust track record of high-
level corruption cases. The 2023 amendments to the Criminal Code continue to significantly 
undermine  efforts  to  combat  corruption,  particularly  affecting  the  prosecution  of  high-level 
corruption cases. The State Commission for Prevention of Corruption continues to  focus on 
prevention and institutional cooperation  but is less active in detecting and reporting alleged 
instances  of  corruption.  Concerns  remain  regarding  the  effective  verification  of  asset 
declarations. Effective oversight of political party financing continues to be hampered by an 
inadequate  legislative  framework  and  a  lack  of  resources  and  expertise.  Whistleblower 
protection  remains  weak,  discouraging  individuals  from  reporting  corruption.  Corruption 
risks are high, in particular in the healthcare and public procurement areas, while the impact 
of political influence on efforts to address corruption is highlighted as a concern.  

The  financial  independence  of  the  Agency  for  Audio  and  Audiovisual  Media  Services  has 
been  improved.  Appointments  of  new  members  to  its  Council  are  still  pending.  The  self-
regulatory  Council  of  Media  Ethics  continues  its  activities  despite  concerns  about  securing 
long-term  sustainable  funding.  The  Public  Service  Broadcaster  faces  challenges  despite 
improvements  in  its  funding.  Challenges  remain  concerning  transparency  of  media 
ownership.  The  reintroduction  of  state-funded  advertising  has  drawn  criticism  from  media 
experts  and  civil  society  organisations.  While  the  legal  framework  for  access  to  public 
information  is  in place, its inconsistent implementation  can pose challenges to  the effective 
exercise  of  this  right.  Despite  some  progress  in  strengthening  the  legal  protection  for 
journalists, their working environment has not improved.  

The  Parliament  is  implementing  the  new  Rules of  Procedure,  which  were  adopted  with  the 
aim  of  improving  its  oversight  and  efficiency.  Challenges  remain  regarding  parliamentary 
appointments  which  raise  concerns  about  merit-based  selections.  Shortcomings  remain  in 
implementing  processes  for 
inclusive  and  evidence-based  policymaking.  The  new 
Constitutional  Court  Act  entered  into  force,  strengthening  its  role  in  the  monitoring  and 
enforcement of its decisions. Financial and human resource constraints continue to affect the 
functioning  of  the  Ombudsperson’s  Office  and  of  the  Commission  for  Prevention  and 
to  enhance 
Protection  Against  Discrimination.  The  Government 
cooperation  with  civil  society,  while  civil  society  raised  challenges,  including  online  hate 
speech. 

initiated  measures 

1 

 
 
I. 

JUSTICE SYSTEM1 

Independence  

The level of perceived judicial independence in North Macedonia continues to be very 
low among both the general public and companies. Overall, 28% of the general population 
and 26% of companies perceive the level of independence of courts and judges to be ‘fairly 
or very good’ in 20252. The perceived judicial independence remains low but has increased in 
comparison with 2024 both among the general public (25% in 2024) and companies (20% in 
2024). The main reasons cited by the general public for the perceived lack of independence of 
courts  and  judges  are  the  perception  of  interference  or  pressure  from  the  Government  and 
politicians  as  well  as,  cited  by  both  the  general  public  and  companies,  the  interference  or 
pressure from economic or other specific interests3. 

to 

the 

implementation  were 

North Macedonia continued implementing the Strategy for Judicial Reform 2024-2028, 
although challenges remain. The implementation rate of activities planned in 2024 stands at 
42.9%4.  Key  challenges 
interinstitutional 
coordination  and  cooperation,  as  well  as  lack  of  funding  and  human  resources.  The  budget 
planned  for  2025  does  not  provide  for  the  funds  necessary  to  implement  the  envisaged 
measures.  A  Council  for  Monitoring  the  Implementation  of  the  Strategy  was  established  in 
May 2024, but did not meet in 20245, which called into question the proper monitoring and 
coordination among involved institutions. In 2025, the Council was restructured in an effort 
to  improve  its  functioning,  including  to  ensure  regular  meetings  and  coordination  for  the 
implementation  of  the  Justice  Sector  Strategies6.  The  Council  has  not  yet  met  in  its  new 
composition. 

insufficient 

Interference  and  pressure  from  other  State  branches  raise  serious  concerns  about  the 
respect  for  judicial  independence.  Initiatives  presented  by  the  Government  as  aiming  to 
tackle corruption have largely focused on taking ‘robust action’ against the judiciary, which 
in some instances raised serious concerns regarding the respect for the independence of the 
judiciary  and  the  principle  of  separation  of  powers.  This  is  particularly  the  case  as  regards 
announcements  from  the  highest  Government  level  about  plans  to  ‘dissolve’  the  Judicial 
Council  and  the  Council  of  Prosecutors.  Following  public  statements  from  Government 
officials repeatedly calling for the dismissal of the members of the Judicial Council, in March 
2025,  the  Parliament  voted  on  ‘interpellation  motions’7  against  the  five  non-magistrate 

1  An overview of the institutional framework for all four pillars can be found here. 
2   Flash Eurobarometers 554 and 555 (2025). The level of perceived judicial independence is categorised as 
follows: very low (below 30% of respondents perceive judicial independence as fairly good and very good); 
low (between 30-39%), average (between 40-59%), high (between 60-75%), very high (above 75%). 

3   Flash Eurobarometers 554 and 555 (2025); Flash Eurobarometers 540 and 541 (2024). 
4   Ministry  of  Justice  (2024a).  Of  the  152  planned  activities  for  2024,  24  have  been  fully  implemented, 

implementation of 69 is ongoing, and 57 have not yet been started.  

5   Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025),  pp.  1.  The  Ministry  of  Justice  has  prepared  in  June  an  annual 
report for the implementation of the Action Plan of the Justice System Development Strategy (2024-2028). 
A  semi-annual  report  for  the  implementation  of  the  Action  Plan  of  the  Justice  System  Development 
Strategy (2024-2028) will be also prepared and published in July 2025. 
Ibidem.  
Interpellations  are  inquiries  into  the  work  of  public  official  by  the  Parliament.  According  to  the 
Parliament’s Rule of Procedures, interpellations can be raised ‘for the work of any public official” (Art. 45). 
If the motion is adopted, the parliament can adopt a conclusion on the contents of the interpellation.   

6  
7  

2 

 
 
 
members of the Judicial Council, which are elected by the Parliament8. While these motions 
do not provide the legal grounds for dismissing the Judicial Council members, they amount to 
de  facto  political  no  confidence  votes9,  and  as  such  risk  undermining  the  legitimacy  and 
independence  of  the  Council  members.  The  reasons  cited  for  the  interpellations  in  the 
parliament were unprofessional performance of duties that eroded the already low public trust 
in the judiciary. In addition, Government officials publicly called that these votes should lead 
to  the  resignation  of  the  Council  members.  The  use  of  the  interpellation  motions  was 
criticised by stakeholders10. Judges and prosecutors  are  also  facing  increased pressure from 
public smear campaigns, online and in the media, including by high officials of the executive 
and  politicians11.  The  President  of  the  Judicial  Council  resigned  in  December  2024,  citing 
undue  political  pressure  as  a  reason,  while  continuing  to  serve  as  a  Council  member12.  A 
week  later,  the  premises  of  the  Judicial  Council  were  searched  by  the  police,  following  a 
notification  by  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior13.  A  new  President  of  the  Judicial  Council  was 
unanimously  elected  by  its  members  in  January  202514.  Moreover,  in  an  effort  to  address 
wider concerns of undue influence in the judiciary, the Supreme Court, in collaboration with 
civil  society  organisations,  is  developing  a  project  to  internally  report  allegations  of  undue 
interference, since the existing avenues are deemed ineffective15. 

The  dismissal  procedure  launched  against  the  Chief  Prosecutor  exposed  shortcomings 
in the rules for the dismissal and its risk of politicisation. In March 2025, the Government 
initiated a dismissal procedure against the Chief Prosecutor, invoking, among others, that the 
Chief Prosecutor harmed the reputation of the judiciary16. The current grounds for a serious 
disciplinary  violation,  which  can  lead  to  the  dismissal  of  the  Chief  Prosecutor,17  include 
broad  definitions,  such  as  ‘improper  behaviour  that  damage  the  reputation  of  the  public 
prosecution office’, which leave room for legal uncertainty and politicisation of the dismissal 

8  

In  December  2024,  the  Parliament  had  not  approved  the  Judicial  Council’s  2023  annual  report  which 
provides a legal basis to initiate a debate in the bodies which elected members of the Judicial Council about 
an assessment of their respective work (Parliament of the Republic of North Macedonia (2024, 2025)). 
9   According  to  the  Law  on  the  Judicial  Council,  the  term  of  a  Judicial  Council  member  can  only  be 
terminated  by  the  Judicial  Council  themselves  based  on  conditions  defined  in  the  law.  Nevertheless,  the 
interpellations  reasoned  that  the  Council  members  had  failed  to  perform  their  duties  adequately,  and 
members of parliament called for their resignation (Parliament of the Republic of North Macedonia (2025)).  
10   European  Parliament  (2025),  §5:  “Urges  the  authorities  of  North  Macedonia  to  refrain  from  opaque, 
politicised dismissals from, and appointments to, positions within independent bodies and agencies, as well 
as  to  ensure  that  the  organisations  are  adequately  funded,  and  that  decisions  and  recommendations  are 
implemented consistently”. Country Visit North Macedonia (2025), Judicial Council, Coalition All for Fair 
Trials,  IPA  II  Project  “EU  Support  for  Rule  of  Law”,  European  Policy  Institute  Skopje  (2024);  Citizen 
Association Institute for Human Rights (2024), mia.mk (2025a).  

11   Country visit North Macedonia, Associations for judges and prosecutors. 
12   Judicial Council (2024a). 
13   The  Skopje  Basic  Public  Prosecutor’s  Office  explained  that  the  search  was  conducted  in  relation  to  a 
notification from the Interior Ministry that ordered to secure the minutes of a Council Session that discussed 
the term limit of the former Council President. European Policy Institute Skopje (2025).  

14   Judicial Council (2025c). 
15   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 12. 
16   The  Government  claimed  that  the  Chief  prosecutor  reportedly  proposed  in  the  Council  of  Public 
Prosecutors an unlawful nomination to a higher prosecution office, exercised undue pressure upon the lower 
prosecution  services,  and  that  the  country’s  drop  in  the  Transparency  International  corruption  perception 
index  was  imputable  to  the  alleged  poor  performances  of  the  Chief  Prosecutor.  North  Macedonia  was 
ranked 88th in 2024, losing two positions from the 2023 index (Transparency International, 2024). 24.mk 
(2025); Balkan EU (2025) 

17   Law on the Public Prosecutor’s Office (2020), Articles 88 and 91. 

3 

 
 
 
of the Chief Prosecutor18. On 26 March 2025, the Government announced that it would halt 
the dismissal procedure, noting the importance to ensure the continuation of the prosecutors’ 
work in the aftermath of the 16 March fire in a nightclub in Kochani19. In April, the Council 
of Public Prosecutors provided a negative opinion, not supporting the dismissal proposal20.  

Measures  were  taken  across  the  judiciary  to  enhance  transparency,  while  some 
concerns  remain  regarding  judicial  and  prosecutorial  appointment  decisions.  New 
systems  to  register  audio  and  video  recordings  of  court  hearings  were  introduced,  thereby 
replacing  obsolete  technology  and  improving  transparency21.  In  September  2024,  the 
Supreme Court revised its Rules of Procedure22, allowing public access and media presence 
to  general  sessions.  The  Supreme  Court  and  Judicial-Media  Council23  issued  joint 
recommendations to ensure reporting on court cases of public interest, in an effort to improve 
transparency  and  public  trust24.  Almost  all  acts  adopted  by  the  Judicial  Council  and  the 
Council  of  Public  Prosecutors25  are  made  publicly  available  on  their  websites,  and  the 
sessions  are  public.  Judicial  Council  sessions  are  broadcast26,  whereas  Council  of  Public 
Prosecutors’  sessions  allow  journalists  and  CSOs  to  attend,  without  broadcasting27.  The 
Judicial Council made progress addressing the recommendations from the 2023 Peer Review 
Mission  within  its  competences28,  notably  to  strengthen  merit-based  appointments  and 
promotions, and to enhance transparency29. As of September 2024, the Judicial Council has 
been implementing its  new rules  of procedures  requiring provision  of both  oral  and written 
explanations  for  the  selection  or  non-selection  of  judges30.  However,  transparency  is  still 
implemented  inconsistently,  as  the  reasoning  is  often  insufficiently  substantiated31.  For  the 
Council  of  Public  Prosecutors,  no  similar  transparency  rules  are  in  place  and  the  decision-

18   Article 88, Law on Public Prosecution. European standards call for clarity on the conditions for the pre-term 
dismissal of the Prosecutor General, including an ex-ante opinion of an expert body as to whether there are 
sufficient  grounds  for  dismissal,  and  a  fair  hearing  of  the  Prosecutor  General  in  dismissal  proceedings. 
Venice Commission (2010), paras. 39-40. 

19   The  Government  noted  that  no  matter  the  opinion  of  the  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors,  the  Government 

would not proceed to send it for a vote in Parliament. 4News.mk (2025), mia.mk (2025b). 

20   The  procedure  prescribes  that  the  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  provides  a  non-binding  opinion  on  the 
dismissal request from the government, before it can be submitted for a vote to the Parliament. Council of 
Public Prosecutors (2025b).  

21   Judicial Council (2024b). 
22   Official Gazette No.199/24. 
23   The Judicial-Media Council was established by the  Association of Judges and brings together judges and 
journalists  to  enhance  transparency  and  tackle  misinformation  by  providing  guidance  and  standards  for 
reporting on court cases of public interest.  

24   Supreme Court of the Republic of North Macedonia (2024a). In one case, a judge from the Basic Court in 
Bitola  failed  to  comply,  prompting  an  ongoing  legal  review  by  the  Supreme  Court.  European  Policy 
Institute (2025). 

25   The Council of Public Prosecutors (CPP) has a new, more accessible website. 
26   In line with its Communication Strategy (2024-2028), see Judicial Council (2024c). 
27   Country Visit North Macedonia, IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”. 
28   In September 2023, a team of European experts conducted a peer review mission focused on strengthening 
the  functioning  and  independence  of  the  Judicial  Council  through  the  EU’s  TAIEX  programme.  The 
Judicial  Council  has  implemented  7  out  of  17  recommendations  that  do  not  require  constitutional  or 
legislative amendments. 

29   Citizen Association Institute for Human Rights (2024). 
30   Country visit North Macedonia, Institute for Human Rights. 
31   Country visit North Macedonia, IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”, Coalition All for Fair Trials, 

European Policy Institute. 

4 

 
 
 
making  is  generally  less  transparent,  despite  some  recent  improvements32.  In  addition, 
stakeholders remain concerned about the lack of a merit-based selection process33. In October 
2024,  the  selection  process  for  the  new  Director  of  the  Academy  for  Judges  was  also 
criticised for the lack of a clear legal procedure34.  

Legislative drafting processes are ongoing regarding the independence of the judiciary 
and  the  autonomy  of  the  public  prosecution  service.  Following  the  2023  Peer  Review 
mission, a process started to implement its recommendations, and a revised draft law of the 
Judicial Council has been prepared35.. The draft law aims to align with European standards, 
and  among  others,  strengthen  the  independence  of  the  judiciary,  by  clarifying  the  selection 
procedure  and  qualification  requirements  for  Council  members,  and  provisions  concerning 
the  appointment  and  disciplinary  procedures  of  judges  and  Judicial  Council  members.  The 
draft  law  was  published  for  public  consultation  and  sent  to  the  Venice  Commission  which 
adopted an opinion in June, recommending that the grounds for dismissal are clarified 36. In 
parallel, work to amend the Law on Public Prosecution and the Law on the Council of Public 
Prosecutors  started  in  November37.  The  amendments  would  aim  to  implement  European 
standards  and  strengthen  the  autonomy  of  the  prosecution  service,  including  GRECO 
recommendations38,  focusing  on  automatic  case  distribution,  and  clarifying  oversight  and 
accountability  procedures,  as  well  as  disciplinary  violations,  sanctions,  and  reinforcing  the 
Council's role39.  

Quality 

Limited  financial  resources  allocated  to  the  judiciary  continue  to  affect  its  financial 
autonomy. The budgets of the judiciary and the public prosecution service remain below the 
minimum prescribed in law. For the judicial system, instead of the legally prescribed 0.8% of 
GDP40, the 2025 annual budget allocated 0.31% of GDP. For the Public Prosecutor's Office, 
the  budget  expressed  as  a  percentage  of  the  total  budget  is  0.22%,  instead  of  the  legally 

32   Country Visit, North Macedonia, civil society organisations, IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”. 
In March 2025, the Council of Public Prosecutors started providing explanations for its decisions regarding 
the election of prosecutors of the 8th generation graduates of the Academy. Council of Public Prosecutors 
(2025d). 

33   Country Visit North Macedonia, Coalition All for Fair Trials, IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”. 
34   While the law requires a public vote, no further details for the voting procedure are specified  through by-
laws or rulebooks. In the absence of clear internal voting procedures, the Academy’s Managing Board held 
a  vote  by  selecting  one  of  more  candidates  on  a  ballot.  The  unsuccessful  candidate  challenged  the 
appointment with the Administrative Court. Transparency International Macedonia (2024). 

35   IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law” (2025). The consultations covered key recommendations of 
the peer review, including the election process for Judicial Council members in the Parliament, disciplinary 
liability of Council members, and defining the competent authorities for action and the right to appeal.  

36  Venice Commission on the draft Law on Judicial Council (2025a) p. 13. 
37   Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025),  p.  2.  A  revised  Law  on  the  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  is 
intended  to  align  it  with  the  Justice  Sector  Reform  Strategy  2024-2028,  including  to  improve  the 
transparency of the Council of Public Prosecutors. The draft Law on Public Prosecution was published for 
public consultation in April 2025. It will be submitted as well for the opinion of the Venice Commission.  

38   GRECO (2024), Recommendation No 16 (2).  
39   Regarding amedments to the Law on Public Prosecution, the working group aims to enhance electronic case 
allocation  mechanisms  and  clarify  the  oversight  and  accountability  powers  of  competent  institutions  and 
public prosecutors, while also addressing the disciplinary framework. 

40   2010  Law  on  the  Court  Budget;  Law  on  judicial  budget,  OG  No.  60/2003,  37/2006,  103/2008  and 

145/2010.  

5 

 
 
 
envisaged 0.4%41. The budget allocation declined in 2024 compared to the previous year. The 
courts  and  prosecution  offices  still  need  formal  approval  from  the  Ministry  of  Finance  for 
internal  budget  allocations,  such  as  resource  and  staffing  decisions,  which  does  not  allow 
them  budgetary  autonomy42.  The  laws  regulating  the  salaries  of  judges,  public  prosecutors, 
members  of  the  Judicial  Council  and  the  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  were  amended  in 
December, resulting in a remuneration freeze at the level of the previous year43.  

The  deficit  of  human  resources  in  the  judiciary  was  partly  addressed  by  new 
recruitments but remains a concern. Staffing levels at the end of 2024 were critically low, 
ranging  from  20-50%  for  courts,  with  similarly  low  figures  in  prosecution  offices44.  In 
February  2025,  the  Judicial  Council  and  the  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  published 
vacancies for the graduates of the Academy for Judges and Prosecutors, 50 for judges and 47 
for  public  prosecutors.  Following  the  application  processes45,  49  new  judges  were  elected, 
but  only  28  public  prosecutors.  Therefore  19  vacancies  as  public  prosecutor  remained 
unfilled.  Both  Councils  published  a  new  round  of  vacancies,  de  facto  competing  for 
recruiting  the  unelected  candidates46,  and  19  more  judges  were  elected47.  A  further 
aggravating factor is that currently no training of new judges and prosecutors takes place. The 
ongoing  admission  process  to  the  Academy,  which  was  launched  more  than  two  years  ago 
and  aims  to  recruit  130  trainees,  remains  on  hold48,  for  reasons  which  remain  unclear49. 
Another  challenge  is  the  lack  of  implementation  of  the  human  resource  strategies  for  the 

41   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 14-15. 
42   Country  visit  North  Macedonia,  Judicial  Council,  PPO,  Association  of  Judges,  Association  of  Public 
Prosecutors.  The  Government  intends  to  have  amendments  to  the  Law  on  Judicial  Budget  prepared  and 
adopted  by  December  2025.  Analysis  has  been  prepared  for  the  judicial  and  public  prosecutor's  budgets, 
which provide further recommendations and guidelines. Government of North Macedonia (2025), p. 3. That 
the Ministry of Finance decides on details of the operational budget of judicial bodies contains dangers of 
undue interference in the independent exercise of their functions. Venice Commission (2025b), p. 25, see 
also Venice Commission (2012), §§95-98; (1995), p. 3. 

43   Official  Gazette  No.  272/2024.  Amendments  to  the  laws  regulating  the  salaries  of  judges,  public 
prosecutors,  members  of  the  Judicial  Council  and  members  of  the  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  and  the 
Law on court service have been prepared and submitted in Governmental procedure. Government of North 
Macedonia (2025), p.4. 

44   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 9, 17. According to the data for end 2024, the total number 
of judicial positions planned for all courts is 539, of which 268 are filled, and 271 remain vacant.  In  the 
Public  Prosecutor's  Office  only  169  out  of  261  prosecutor positions  are  filled  and  only 360  out  of  1  126 
administrative staff positions occupied. Furthermore, there are just six IT officers serving the entire country; 
Council of Public Prosecutors (2025a).  

45   The Judicial Council elects judges. The Council elects a judge of a basic court from the list of candidates, 
submitted by the Academy for Judges and Public Prosecutors, that applied on the announcement, following 
an interview conducted by Council. 

46   Judicial Council (2025b), Council of Public Prosecutors (2025c): On 11 and 12 March 2025, the Judicial 
Council and the Council of Public Prosecutors adopted decisions to publish new  vacancies, for 35 judges 
and  19  public  prosecutors  respectively.  The  situation  has  led  to  conflicting  views,  with  the  Council  of 
Public Prosecutors opposing the Judicial Council's decision to announce a second vacancy.  

47    Judicial Council (2025a). 
48   The ongoing intake process had been launched in January 2023 and  was initially delayed due to technical 
and procurement issues, then postponed for the election period in 2024.  The Ministry of Finance informed 
the Managing Board of the Academy that no funds were secured in the 2025 state budget for recruiting 130 
candidates. See public statement of the Managing Board of the Academy of Judges and Public Prosecutors 
(2025). The Academy is awaiting a government decision to proceed with the intake process. Given that no 
recruitment is ongoing, there will be a gap of several years before new graduates of the Academy become 
judges and prosecutors.     

49   Justice,  Freedom  and  Security  Subcommittee  with  North  Macedonia  (2025).  Country  Visit  North 

Macedonia, IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”, Academy for Judges and Prosecutors. 

6 

 
 
 
Courts and the Public Prosecutor’s Office, which were adopted in 2020. The specified targets 
and timelines under the strategies’ action plans have not been achieved50. Elections to higher 
courts  were  also  delayed,  including  judges  to  the  Supreme  Court,  where  only  14  out  of  26 
positions are filled51. A new president of the Supreme Court was elected in May. In February 
2025, the Law on Labour Relations was amended enabling judges and prosecutors to opt to 
serve beyond the retirement age of 64, which may contribute to reducing the deficit in human 
resources  in  the  judiciary  to  a  certain  extent52.  Regarding  judicial  training,  the  Academy 
continued to strengthen its curricula for basic and continuous training, while also  struggling 
with insufficient staffing, inadequate technical equipment, and unsuitable premises. 

Efforts  to  further  improve  the  digital  tools  for  case  management  and  court  statistics 
continue,  but  challenges  remain.  While  some  progress  has  been  made  to  advance 
digitalisation, for example to provide new computers, this fell short of addressing the courts’ 
IT  needs.  Courts  still  struggle  with  outdated  infrastructure,  insufficient  IT  support,  and 
inconsistent  application of  digital  tools53.  The  Council  for  Coordination  of Information  and 
Communication Technology in Judicial Bodies (ICT Council), established by the Ministry of 
Justice, leads the digitisation process. In November 2024, a Rulebook on the composition and 
functioning  of  the  Council  was  adopted,  aiming  to  increase  its  efficiency  and  technical 
expertise54.  The  Automated  Court  Case  Management  Information  System  (ACCMIS) 
continues  to  require  improvements,  in  particular  to  take  into  account  case  complexity55. 
Between  October  and  December  2024,  the  Commission  for  Supervision  of  ACCMIS 
conducted reviews in 13 courts, confirming that ACCMIS was operational in all these courts 
and  that  cases  were  assigned  solely  through  the  ACCMIS  system.  However,  in  numerous 
instances, exemptions from the automatic allocation of cases were registered and cases were 
reallocated by the court president. The randomised allocation of cases is also limited by the 
fact that for certain courts there are not sufficient judges to allow a random allocation56. The 
prosecution  service's  new  case  management  system  is  under  development  with  the  help  of 
international support57. The plans envisage the interoperability between the systems, enabling 
the efficient transfer information with courts, and the full tracing of cases58. The challenges of 
the sector persist, notably shortage of qualified IT technicians and auxiliary legal personnel. 

Efficiency 

The  efficiency  of  the  justice  system  has  overall  declined  as  the  length  of  proceedings 
increased for almost all case categories. Except for first instance administrative cases, the 
clearance  rate  lay  below  100%  in  2023  in  all  case  categories  for  both  first  and  second 
instance, meaning that there were more incoming than resolved cases over the year, and thus 

50   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 17. 2024 Enlargement report, North Macedonia. 
51   Ministry of Justice (2025), p. 2. Elections of new judges of the Court of Appeals were partly completed and 

three Supreme Court judges were elected in April. 

52   Parliament of the Republic of North Macedonia, Archive number 08-751/1 (2025). 
53   Supreme Court (2024c). 
54   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 18; Justice, Freedom and Security Subcommittee with North 

Macedonia (2025). 

55   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 28. 
56   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 9. 
57   A Commission for the Coordination of Activities Related to Information  and Communication Technology 
in  Public  Prosecutor's  Offices  was  established  in  June  2024  and  is  responsible  for  coordinating  activities 
related to the IPA III programme of the European Union for the development of a new computer system in 
the Public Prosecutor's Office. Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p.10. 

58   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 19. 

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the  numbers  of  pending  cases  are  increasing.  There  is  a  concerning  negative  development 
from 2022-2023 especially for second instance administrative cases, where the clearance rate 
dropped from 103% to 69%, and the disposition time more than tripled, from 92 to 306 days. 
The  respective  pending  cases  at  the  end  of  year  have  more  than  doubled.  For  civil  and 
commercial  second  instance  cases,  the  development  is  also  negative,  the  clearance  rate 
declined  from  97%  to  86%  and  the  disposition  time  increased  from  166  to  257  days.  For 
second  instance  criminal  cases,  the  clearance  rate  remained  stable  at  99%,  while  the 
disposition  time  increased  from  129  to  149  days.  In  first  instance,  the  indicators  show  an 
improvement for administrative cases with the clearance rate increasing from 104% to 112%, 
and the disposition time declining from 303 to 283 days. For civil and commercial cases, the 
first instance clearance rate improved from 85% to 93%, while the disposition time increased 
from  312  to  339  days.  For  criminal  cases,  however,  the  negative  trend  from  2021  to  2022 
continued also in 2023, with a clearance rate declining from 94% to 88% and a disposition 
time increasing from 159 days to 223 days59. 

II. 

ANTI-CORRUPTION FRAMEWORK  

The perception among experts, citizens and businesses is that the level of corruption in 
the  public  sector  is  high.  In  the  2024  Corruption  Perceptions  Index  by  Transparency 
International, North Macedonia scores 40/100 and ranks 88th globally60. This perception has 
improved over the past  five years61. The 2025 Special Eurobarometer on Corruption shows 
that 89% of respondents consider corruption widespread in their country (EU average  69%) 
and  31%  of  respondents  feel  personally  affected  by  corruption  in  their  daily  lives  (EU 
average  30%).  As  regards  businesses,  91%  of  companies  consider  that  corruption  is 
widespread  (EU  average  63%)  and  54%  consider  that  corruption  is  a  problem  when  doing 
business  (EU  average  35%).  Furthermore,  34%  of  respondents  find  that  there  are  enough 
successful prosecutions to deter people from corrupt practices (EU average 36%), while 50% 
of  companies  believe  that  people  and  businesses  caught  for  bribing  a  senior  official  are 
appropriately punished (EU average 33%)62. 

Implementation  of  the  national  anti-corruption  strategy  2021-2025  continues  to  be 
insufficient overall. The State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (SCPC) reported in 
its  annual  report  of  202563  that  out  of  154  activities  planned  for  2024,  only  28  activities 
(18%) have been fully implemented, 49 activities (32%) are in the process of implementation, 
while 77 (50%) have not yet been implemented. The slow implementation rate of the Strategy 
reflects  a  general  lack  of  political  commitment  and  ownership  among  the  involved  state 
institutions64. In line with  the legal  requirements,  the 2024 report on the implementation of 
the  strategy  has  been  submitted  to  the  Parliament  in  March  202565  and  published  on  the 
website  of  the  SCPC.  Together  with  external  experts,  the  SCPC  has  analysed  the  main 
obstacles to fully implement the anti-corruption strategy over the past five years. The analysis 

59   CEPEJ (2024), pp. 16-20. 
60   The level of perceived corruption is categorised as follows: low (above 79); relatively low (between 79-60), 

relatively high (between 59-50), high (below 50). 

61   In 2020 the score was 35, while, in 2025, the score is 40. The score significantly increases/decreases when 
it  changes  more  than  five  points;  improves/deteriorates  (changes  between  4-5 points); has  been  relatively 
stable (changes from 1-3 points) in the last five years. 

62  Data from Special Eurobarometer 561 (2025) and Flash Eurobarometer 557 (2025). 
63   State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2025a). 
64   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 33. 
65   State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2025b). 

8 

 
 
 
points  to  inefficient  inter-institutional  coordination,  insufficient  monitoring  and  budget 
planning, a lack of expertise due to frequent staff turnover and methodological flaws66. Work 
has started on drafting a new Strategy for 2026-2030, taking into account the findings of the 
analysis  and  its  recommendations67.  The  composition  of  the  inter-institutional  body  for 
coordination of anti-corruption activities68 now also includes a CSO representative as voting 
member69, which is a positive development70.  

Despite  recent  efforts  in  investigating  and  prosecuting  corruption,  delays  in  court 
proceedings and resource constraints continue to hinder the establishment of a robust 
track record of high-level corruption cases. High-level corruption cases often face delays 
or  result  in  minimal  sentences,  which  reinforces  public  scepticism  about  the  judiciary's 
effectiveness.  Investigations  into  high-profile  cases  rarely  lead  to  final  convictions71.  In 
December  2024,  the  Chief  Prosecutor  issued  a  mandatory  instruction  that  all  public 
prosecutors  must  prioritise  corruption  cases  alongside  cases  of  significant  public  interest72. 
Investigative  centres  within  the  prosecutor’s  offices  are  also  required  to  give  these  cases 
precedence.  The  Public  Prosecutor's  Office  (PPO)  has  reported  strengthened  capacity  for 
investigations, better inter-institutional collaboration, and four investigative centres are now 
operational73. The issue of insufficient  public prosecutors has been partially addressed with 
the selection of new prosecutors from graduates of the Academy for Judges and Prosecutors. 
However, newly recruited prosecutors can be assigned for the first three years of their tenure 
only to cases involving criminal charges with prison sentences of up to five years, as per the 
Law on Public Prosecutors and the Law on Criminal Procedure74. Despite a relocation to new 
premises,  the  Public  Prosecutor’s  Office  for  Prosecuting  Organised  Crime  and  Corruption 
(OCCPPO) continues to lack adequate budget and staff, notably financial experts.  

The  effect  of  the  amendments  to  the  Criminal  Code  continues  to  significantly 
undermine efforts to combat corruption, particularly affecting the prosecution of high-
level  corruption cases.   The implementation  of the amended Criminal  Code75 continues to 
result  in  termination  of  additional  ongoing  cases,  notably  of  the  former  Special  Public 
Prosecutor’s Office (SPO). Several cases had to be terminated at investigation or court phase, 
either  because  they  became  time-barred  due  to  the  reduction  of  penalties  of  the  offences 
concerned,  or  because  the  specific  offences  had  been  removed  from  the  Criminal  Code76. 
Nevertheless, there are no precise official data on how many corruption cases are affected by 
these  amendments.  A  ruling  of  the  Supreme  Court  maintained  abuse  of  office  in  public 

66   USAID (2024) and Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 26. 
67   USAID (2024).  
68   2024 Rule of Law Report, North Macedonia, p. 14. 
69   Justice, Freedom and Security Subcommittee with North Macedonia (2025). 
70   The  constitutive  session  of  the  Interinstitutional  Body  for  coordination  of  anti-corruption  activities  under 
the  chairpersonship  of  Deputy  Prime  Minister  for  Good  Governance  took  place  on  8  April.  The  re-
establishment of this body could be a positive development pending political leadership and shared vision. 

71   2024  Enlargement  Report,  North  Macedonia,  p.  29.  Country  visit  North  Macedonia,  IPA  II  Project  “EU 

Support for Rule of Law”. 

72   In  the  aftermath  of  the  Kochani  tragedy,  the  PPO  has  started  several  investigations.  Currently,  the 
investigation  is  conducted  against  45  individuals.  The  majority  are  suspected  and  charged  with  serious 
crimes against public safety under Art. 292 in conjunction with Art. 288 of the Criminal Code.  

73   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 33, 113. 
74   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 33. 
75   2024 Rule of Law Report, North Macedonia, p. 13.  According to North Macedonia’s Criminal Procedure 
Code, the reduction in maximum penalties has implications and reduces the applicable statute of limitations. 

76   Article 353 (5) abuse of office in public procurement. 

9 

 
 
 
procurement  as  a  criminal  offence,  but  with  lighter  sentences77.  In  addition,  the  new 
provisions moved jurisdiction over cases involving high-level corruption from the dedicated 
Public  Prosecutor’s  Office  for  Prosecuting  Organised  Crime  and  Corruption  (OCCPPO)  to 
the Basic Public Prosecutor's Offices (PPOs)78, where insufficient specialisation and lack of 
resources  may  hinder  the  effective  prosecution  of  such  offences79.  The  lower  penalties  for 
perpetrators of corruption, and the legal uncertainty that the amendments caused, have further 
contributed to a sense of impunity80. In March 2025, the Constitutional Court has formulated 
reservations  regarding  the  constitutionality  of  the  September  2023  Criminal  Code  changes. 
Consequently, the Parliament has six  months to  review the relevant  provisions, after which 
the  Court  can  decide  whether  to  repeal  or  annul  them81.  In  parallel,  initial  steps  are  being 
taken  towards  reform.  The  Ministry  of  Justice  has  formed  a  working  group  to  prepare 
amendments  to  the  existing  Criminal  Code  to  address  the  negative  impacts  of  the  changes 
made  in  September  2023  and  ensure  effective  enforcement82.  Moreover,  the  Ministry  of 
Justice  is  also  preparing  a  comprehensive  new  Criminal  Code,  to  be  adopted  by  the 
Parliament  by  December  2025,  and  a  new  Law  on  Criminal  Procedure.  The  latter  would 
focus  on  areas  such  as  confiscation,  asset  freezing,  electronic  evidence,  financial 
investigations, special investigative measures, detention, and the appeals process83.  

The  State  Commission  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  (SCPC)  continues  to  focus  on 
prevention  and  institutional  cooperation  but  is  less  active  in  detecting  and  reporting 
alleged instances of corruption.  Challenges remain at the SCPC regarding staff as well as 
funding  for  and  interoperability  of  data  management  systems84.  Stakeholders  have  raised 
concerns about SCPC’s overall lack of proactivity in initiating cases and in verifying the facts 
of the cases when it does pursue allegations, which may hinder its effectiveness, particularly 
as  the  SCPC  often  relies  on  media  reports  to  identify  possible  cases  of  corruption85.  The 
process  of  amending  the  Law  on  Prevention  of  Corruption  and  Conflict  of  Interest,  which 
regulates  the  work  of  the  SCPC,  has  been  re-initiated,  with  a  focus  on  strengthening  the 
penalties86.  A  new  Memorandum  of  Cooperation  was  prepared  in  October  2024,  aiming  to 

77   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 32.  
78   Following  the  changes  to  the  Criminal  Code,  Article  353(5),  abuse  of  office  in  public  procurement,  was 
deleted  from  the  Criminal  Code.  Prior  to  that,  this  offence  was  exclusively  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Public Prosecutor’s Office for Prosecuting Organised Crime and Corruption for the entire country (Article 
32 of the Law on PPO). 

79   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 30; Chief Public Prosecution (2024). 
80    Country  visit  North  Macedonia,  State  Commission  for  the  Prevention  of  Corruption,  civil  society 

organisations. 

81   Constitutional  Court  of  the  Republic  of  North  Macedonia  (2025).  The  Court’s  President  highlighted  that 
there  are  constitutionality  reservations  as  to  the  use of  the  fast-tracked ‘EU  flag’  procedure,  the  differing 
timing for the entry into force of relevant provisions, and the substance of the amendments.  

82   Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025a),  p.  8:  Notably,  the  crime  'Abuse  of  Official  Position  and 
Authority' would be redefined because its present description raises many application issues, with increased 
criminal  penalties.  Additionally,  to  strengthen  penal  policy,  the  Ministry  has  redefined  and  tightened 
sanctions for the crimes of 'Misconduct in the Service' and 'Criminal Association.' 

83   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 32.  
84   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 12.  
85   Country Visit North Macedonia, civil society organisations. 
86   GRECO (2023). GRECO has observed that the current law lacks an adequate  sanctioning mechanism for 

violations related to conflicts of interest, integrity, and anti-corruption rules.  

10 

 
 
 
improve  the  cooperation  between  the  SCPC  and  the  PPO,  but  its  signing  was  delayed  in 
relation to the initiated dismissal procedure against the Chief Prosecutor87.   

Concerns remain regarding the effective verification of asset declarations. A backlog of 
cases and a lack of resources affected the SCPC’s ability to verify asset declarations. In 2024, 
3 620  asset  declarations  were  submitted,  and  109  cases  of  irregularities  were  detected,  the 
majority  of  which  were  due  to  a  failure  to  declare  assets.  The  number  of  systematic  asset 
verifications  declined  from  2023  to  202488.  Some  progress  was  made,  benefiting  from 
international  support,  in  implementing  software  solutions  for  enabling  access  to  databases 
from public institutions89.  

The number of registered lobbyists in the transparency register remains low. The Law 
on  Lobbying,  which  entered  into  force  in  June  2022,  outlines  the  criteria  for  becoming  a 
lobbyist  or  registering  a  lobbying  organisation  and  expanded  the  SCPC's  competencies  to 
maintaining a “Register of Lobbyists, Lobby organisations and Lobbying”. The Register has 
so  far  recorded  32  lobbied  bodies  that  have  fulfilled  the  obligation  to  establish  internal 
procedures  for  transparent  lobbying,  in  line  with  Article  24  of  the  Law  on  Lobbying90.  To 
date, only three lobbying organisations have registered91. 

Effective  oversight  of  political  party  financing  continues  to  be  hampered  by  an 
inadequate  legislative  framework  and  a  lack  of  resources  and  expertise  in  the  SCPC.  
Amendments  to  the  Electoral  Code  in  March  202492  did  not  address  systemic  issues  to  be 
tackled,  namely  the  regulation  of  third-party  financing  of  political  campaigns,  reporting  on 
in-kind contributions and loans, and effective sanctioning, as recommended by ODIHR93. A 
draft of new Electoral  Code was  prepared by the Ministry of Justice, aiming  to  address  the 
ODIHR  recommendations,  and  was  sent  to  ODIHR  for  an  opinion 94.  In  October  2024,  the 
SCPC published its reports on the financing of parties’ electoral campaigns during the 2024 
presidential and parliamentary elections95, in which it provided a positive self-assessment of 
its  role  and  fulfilment  of  its  legal  responsibilities  in  the  electoral  process.  The  two  reports 
were  submitted  to  the Parliament  and  adopted,  with  no  debate96.  The  SCPC  concluded  that 
the  Electoral  Code  should  be  revised,  as  many  provisions  are  either  contradictory  or  too 
vague.  It  highlighted  that  the  percentage  (64%)  of  election  campaign  funding  coming  from 
the  State  Budget  was  too  high  and  favours  the  main  political  parties,  enabling  political 

87   Further,  in  November  2024,  the  SCPC  became  a  full  member  of  the  European  Partners  against 
Corruption/European Anti-Corruption Network (EPAC/EACN) in order to stimulate  the  exchange of best 
practices with similar institutions (State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2024b)). In April 2025, 
the  president  of  the  SCPC  took  leave  following  investigation  on  a  case  related  to  abuse  of  public 
procurement rules in the energy sector.  

88    According to its annual plan, the SCPC carried out only 14 systematic verification of asset declarations, a 
decline from 21 planned verifications in 2023. State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2025a).  
89   Through  an  EU  project,  an  analysis  was  made  of  the  needs  of  the  SCPC  as  well  as  the  possibilities  for 
upgrading and additional operationalisation of the Electronic System for Filing a Declaration of Assets and 
Interests. IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law (2024). 

90   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 46. 
91   State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2025). 
92   Official Gazette No. 58/2024. 
93   ODIHR (2024), p. 18; 2024 Rule of Law Report, North Macedonia, p. 15.  
94  Government of North Macedonia (2025), p. 7. 
95   State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2024c). 
96   Parliament of North Macedonia (2024), Archive nr. 08-4019/1.   

11 

 
 
 
influence on media editorial choices through the purchase of advertising97. ODIHR published 
its  election  report  in  September  2024,  also  pointing  out  deficiencies  in  the  funding  of 
campaign  advertising98  and  noting  that  the  SCPC  took  no  action  against  parties  failing  to 
comply  with  financial  reporting  duties.  It  underlined  that  adequate  resources  and  technical 
expertise for the SCPC and State Audit Office could improve campaign finance oversight99. 

Whistleblower  protection  remains  weak,  discouraging  individuals  from  reporting 
corruption,  while  the  new  law  remains  to  be  adopted.  While  some  legal  protections  for 
whistleblowers  exist,  enforcement  mechanisms  are  insufficient,  leaving  many  reports 
unaddressed.  Those  who  expose  misconduct  often  face  harassment,  job  loss,  or  legal 
consequences,  limiting  the  effectiveness  of  existing  laws100.  In  2023,  during  the  previous 
legislative  period,  a  draft  law  on  protected  reporting  and  whistleblower  protection  was 
prepared, but not tabled before Parliament due to the parliamentary and presidential elections. 
The law continues to be under revision101.  

Corruption  risks  are  high  in  the  healthcare  and  public  procurement  areas,  while  the 
impact of political influence on efforts to address corruption is highlighted as a concern. 
Corruption  remains  a  significant  challenge  in  multiple  sectors.  One  area  that  is  particularly 
susceptible to petty corruption is public healthcare, where instances of bribery and abuse have 
been  reported,  affecting  the  quality  and  accessibility  of  healthcare  services102.  Public 
procurement  is  also  an  area  with  a  high  risk  for  corruption,  with  concerns  around  the 
transparency  of  tender  processes  and  state  contracts103.  In  December  2024,  the  SCPC 
criticised  proposed  amendments  to  the  Public  Procurement  Law,  exercising  its  anti-
corruption  oversight  powers104.  Corruption  in  the public  sector  is  mainly  linked  to  political 
party influence and the inconsistent application of the merit-based hiring of civil servants105. 
Furthermore,  stakeholders  raised  concerns  that  corruption  investigations  and  prosecutions 
might  be  perceived  as  selective,  with  some  cases  being  potentially  driven  by  political 

97   The  SCPC  (2024)  recommends  that  the  Electoral  Code  should  either be  revised, or  a  new  one  should be 
adopted.  The  key  areas  that  need  revisions:  state  budget  financing  criteria  and  amounts  for  political 
campaigns,  inadequate  media  advertising  regulations—especially  for  internet  portals,  rules  on  private 
donations to political parties, financial reporting standards, and the weak sanctions regime.  

98   ODIHR  (2024),  p.  3:  “The  current  system  of  state  funding  for  campaign  advertising  increases  media 
dependence on state subsidies and does not prevent abuse by online news portals established only during 
the campaign and serving to channel state funds to parties”. 

99   ODIHR (2024): “The SCPC did not take action against parties failing financial reporting duties and, due to 
financial constraints, did not deploy field monitors or inspect bank accounts to oversee campaign spending. 
Analysts  were  hired  late  with  limited  access  to  information,  reducing  report  scrutiny.  Additionally,  the 
SCPC inadequately addressed violations of political campaigning provisions.” 
100   Country visit North Macedonia, IPA II  Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”. 
101   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 46; Justice, Freedom and Security Subcommittee with North 

Macedonia (2025). 

102   National Democratic Institute (2023), U.S. Department of State (2024). 
103   Country visit North Macedonia, IPA II  Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”. 
104   State  Commission  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  (2024a).  It  criticised  the  proposed  abolition  of 
administrative  control  over  public  procurement  by  the  Public  Procurement  Bureau  and  the  proposed 
changes  to  the  composition  of  the  State  Commission  for  Public  Procurement  Appeals,  which  it  believed 
could  weaken  anti-corruption  protections.  It  also  emphasised  that  the  amendments  were  drafted  with  no 
adequate public consultation and in fast-track legislative procedure.  

105   Government of North Macedonia (2025), written input, p.28. 

12 

 
 
 
considerations  rather  than  a  comprehensive  approach  to  addressing  corruption  across  all 
parties106. 

III.  MEDIA PLURALISM AND MEDIA FREEDOM 

The  financial  independence  of  the  Agency  for  Audio  and  Audiovisual  Media  Services 
has been improved, while appointments of new members to its Council are still pending. 
The  appointments  by  Parliament  to  the  media  regulator’s  Council  are  overdue  since  July 
2021107.  In  January  2024,  the  parliamentary  Commission  for  Elections  and  Appointments 
selected  seven  new  members  of  the  Agency's  Council108.  The  selection  process  raised 
concerns  for  its  lack  of  transparency,  clear  criteria,  and  impartiality.  Several  stakeholders, 
including the Association of Journalists, notably expressed concerns for lacking professional 
qualifications109. Parliament has yet to confirm the candidates proposed by the Commission 
for  Elections  and  Appointments  in  a  plenary  session.  As  of  January  2025,  the  Ministry  of 
Digital Transformation has transferred the overdue funds and the legally prescribed budget110 
to  the  media  regulator,  increasing  its  financial  independence  and  operational  capacities111. 
The  Agency  for  Audio  and  Audiovisual  Media  Services  continues  to  receive  positive 
feedback  from  media  associations  regarding  its  overall  professionalism112.  The  Media 
Pluralism  Monitor (MPM) 2025 considers the  independence and  effectiveness  of the media 
regulator  to  be  an  area  of  low  risk,  however,  more  efforts  are  needed  in  preventing  party 
political influences in the appointments of members of the media regulator 113. 

The  self-regulatory  Council  of  Media  Ethics  continues  its  activities  despite  concerns 
about  securing  long-term  sustainable  funding.  In  2024,  the  Council  of  Media  Ethics 
presented  a  plan  to  address  the  sustainable  funding  of  its  activity114.  It  proposed  a  mix  of 
financing, based on state funds and membership contributions by media organisations and/or 
journalists'  associations115.  The  review  of  received  complaints  in  2024  shows  a  decrease  in 
complaints  related  to  hate  speech  compared  to  the  previous  year.  The  total  number  of 
complaints received in 2024 was almost one-third lower compared to 2023116. 

The  Public  Service  Broadcaster  faces  challenges,  notably  regarding  its  institutional 
autonomy,  despite  improvements  in  its  funding.  The  Parliament  has  not  yet  appointed  a 

106   Country visit North Macedonia, IPA II Project “EU Support for Rule of Law”. 
107   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p.  34. Mainly because of a lack of political agreement,  as a 

two-thirds majority in Parliament is necessary.  

108   14th session of the Commission on Election and Appointment Issues. 
109   360stepeni.mk  (2025b).  According  to  the  Law  on  Audio  and  Audio-visual  Media  Services  (Article  16), 
candidates must have at least eight years of professional experience in the field and must have distinguished 
themselves in the public in the field of communicology, journalism, IT, culture, economics or law. 

110   According to Article 105, paragraph 1 of the Law on Audio and Audio-visual Media Services, "funds for 
financing  the  broadcasting  activity,  for  the  operation  and  development  of  the  Macedonian  Radio  and 
Television, the PE Macedonian Broadcasting and the Agency for Audio and Audio-visual Media Services 
are provided from the Budget of the Republic of North Macedonia, in the amount of 1% of the realised tax 
revenues determined in the last adopted final account of the budget of the Republic of North Macedonia.” 

111   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 55. 
112   Country visit North Macedonia, civil society organisations. 
113   Media Pluralism Monitor (2025).  
114   The  Council of Media Ethics of Macedonia (CMEM) is a  non-governmental, non-political and non-profit 

organisation. 

115   Country visit, North Macedonia, meeting with stakeholders.  
116   Council of Media Ethics (2025). 

13 

 
 
 
  
new Programme Council for the public broadcaster117, causing ongoing concern since these 
appointments  have  been  pending  since  December  2018118.  An  agreement  was  reached 
between Macedonian Radio Television (MRT) and the Ministry of Digital Transformation to 
settle unpaid funds owed to MRT for 2023119.  Funding for 2024 was transferred and in 2025 
allocated to  MTR, according  to  the Law on Audio  and Audiovisual  Media Services120. The 
public  service  broadcaster  continued  the  modernisation  plans  to  improve  its  professional 
standards, but obstacles remain in recruiting new personnel due to its limited administrative 
autonomy121. When it comes to the media sector overall, the MPM 2025 points to a medium-
high  risk,  while  the  independence  of  the  public  service  media  falls  within  the  category  of 
medium-low risk122. 

Challenges  remain  concerning  transparency  of  media  ownership.  While  the  guidelines 
for  ethical  reporting  of  online  news  media123  contain  a  provision  for  the  disclosure  of 
ownership data, many digital news media still do not comply with the guidelines or are not 
part  of  the  voluntary  registry  managed  by  the  Council  for  Media  Ethics.  The  Ministry  of 
Digital  Transformation,  collaborating  with  numerous  stakeholders  in  the  media  sector,  has 
prepared  amendments  to  the  law  adopted  in  April  2025.  The  aim  of  the  amended  Law  on 
Media is to update the legal framework and regulate online media124. The MPM 2025 points 
to a medium-high risk regarding the transparency of media ownership and to a high risk for 
the plurality of media providers125. There have been no changes during the reporting period 
regarding rules on media concentration. The Law on Audio and Audiovisual Media Services 
has no rules for assessing the impact of market concentration on media pluralism, and there 
are no legal rules to prevent the concentration of ownership in the digital media sector.  

The reintroduction of state-funded advertising has drawn criticism from media experts 
and civil society organisations. Civil society organisations, journalists’ associations, media 
experts,  and  media  regulators  continue  to  have  concerns  about  the  reintroduction  of  state-
funded  advertising126.  The  main  identified  challenges  refer  to  increasing  the  risk  of  the 

117   The Programming Council of MRT protects the public's interests by ensuring programming content remains 

free from political, commercial, and other influences and ideologies, and represents diverse societal views. 

118   Law on audio and audiovisual media services, Article 108. 
119   Law on Audio and Audiovisual Media Services, Article 104. 
120   According  to  the  amendments  to  the  Law  on  Audio  and  Audio-visual  Media  Services  (LAAVMS)  from 
July 2023, the total funds for MRT, Macedonian Broadcasting and the Agency for Audio and Audiovisual 
Media  Services  (AAVMS)  are  in  the  amount  of  1%  of  the  realised  tax  revenues  determined  in  the  last 
adopted final account of the Budget of the Republic of North Macedonia.  

121   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 36. 
122   Media  Pluralism  Monitor  (2025),  p.  26,  underlines  that  “corrosive  media-cum-political  clientelist  ties  in 

North Macedonia are overwhelmingly present and persist”. 

123   Council for Media Ethics (2021). 
124   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 52; 360stepeni.mk (2025а). According to the Government, the 
amendments to the Law on Media are expected to eliminate the existing problems with internet portals in 
North Macedonia by establishing a legal framework that recognises them as media, with clear rules for their 
establishment and registration. The Agency for Audio and Audio-visual Media Services, as the competent 
regulatory body, will maintain the Register of Online Media Publishers. 

125   Media Pluralism Monitor (2025), p. 20; 2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 36. 
126   2024  Rule  of  Law  Report,  North  Macedonia,  p.  18;  2023  Enlargement  Report,  North  Macedonia,  p.  31; 
2024  Enlargement  Report,  North  Macedonia,  p.  7,  36;  Prizma.mk  (2024):  “SCPC  President  Dimitrovska 
warned  that  the  latest  regulatory  changes  have  not  solved  this  problem,  and  that  online  media  receive 
significant  funds  from  the  state  budget.”  Country  Visit  North  Macedonia,  RESIS,  Metamorphosis 
Foundation. 

14 

 
 
 
potential  misuse  of  political  funds  and  creating  a  market  disruption127.  Furthermore,  if  the 
sums  are  large,  state  advertising  may  lead  to  a  situation  where  media  outlets  become 
dependent on the authorities for funding, possibly compromising their editorial independence 
and  ability  to  produce  quality  content.  To  provide  systematic  support  to  media  companies, 
professional  media  organisations  and  civil  society  groups  continue  to  advocate  for  the 
creation of a media pluralism fund. This independent fund would support the development of 
projects and content that serve the public interest, fostering a more diverse, high-quality, and 
independent media landscape128. 

While the legal framework for access to public information is in place, its  inconsistent 
implementation can pose challenges to the effective exercise of this right. Legislation on 
access  to  documents  guarantees  wide  availability  of  information.  However,  inconsistent 
implementation  of  the  Law  on  Free  Access  to  Information129  has  continued,  and  several 
challenges  hindering  the  effective  exercise  of  this  right  have  remained.  This  includes  some 
public institutions130 often rejecting requests or delaying delivery of the public information on 
arbitrary grounds131. Stakeholders  have also  raised  concerns that personal  data protection is 
frequently used as a blanket reason for refusing access to public documents, and the process 
of obtaining information is excessively lengthy132. To enforce the legal protection of the right 
to  free  access  to  information,  North  Macedonia  has  ratified  the  Council  of  Europe 
Convention  on  Access  to  Official  Documents133.  The  MPM  2025  confirms  that  while  the 
legal protection of the right to information carries a medium-low risk, public administration is 
not sufficiently responsive in giving access to information in practice134. 

Despite  some  progress  in  strengthening  the  legal  protection  for  journalists,  their 
working environment has not improved. Within the Public Prosecutor's Office, four public 
prosecutors have been designated for coordinating and overseeing cases involving attacks on 
journalists.  The  Association  of  Journalists  of  Macedonia  (AJM)  is  offering  legal  aid  and 
support to journalists who encounter attacks and threats. AJM has also implemented a system 

127   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 36. 
128   Macedonian  Institute  for  Media  (2025),  media  associations,  such  as  the  Association  of  Journalists, 

Independent Union of Journalists and Media Workers, etc. 

129   The  Law  is  aligned  with  international  standards  and  regulates  the  conditions,  manner,  and  procedure  of 
exercising the right to free access to information of public character disposed by state administration bodies 
and other bodies and institutions established by law. 

130   Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025a),  p.  57.  Silence  still  represents  a  serious  problem  among 
Information  Holders,  and  thus  a  major  challenge  for  the  Agency  for  Protection  of  Free  Access  to  Public 
Information. This is evident from the number of complaints filed with the Agency in the past 2024, which 
relate  to  the  silence  of  the  administration,  namely  246  complaints  or  69.49%  of  the  total  354  complaints 
filed. 

131   The 2024 report of the Association of Journalists notes that information holders often prolong and abuse the 
maximum  legal  deadline  of  20  days  for  responding  to  requests  and  recommends  that  institutions  should 
provide up-to-date performance information and create a special section on their website with all data for 
exercising this right.  

132   Country visit North Macedonia, civil society organisations. 
133   The Council of Europe Convention on Access to Official Documents (CETS No. 205), also known as the 
Tromsø  Convention,  entered  into  force  on  1  March  2025.  A  revised  draft  Law  on  Free  Access  to  Public 
Information has been prepared and published  for public consultation. The  revisions aim to  align the Law 
with the Council of Europe Convention on Access to Official Documents, notably to improve the efficiency 
of the procedure for free access to public information, as well as strengthen the responsibility of the holders 
of public information. Government of North Macedonia (2025), p.8. 

134   Media Pluralism Monitor (2025); 2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 26. 

15 

 
 
 
for recording and monitoring attacks on journalists135. Effective implementation of the legal 
provisions for the protection of journalists remains challenging, particularly in cases of online 
harassment  and gender-based violence targeting female journalists136. Stakeholders reported 
concerns for a rise in online smear campaigns, intimidation and threats, targeting especially 
investigative journalists137. Since the 2024 Rule of Law Report, one alert has been recorded 
on  the  Council  of  Europe’s  Platform  to  promote  the  protection  of  journalism  and  safety  of 
journalists. It concerns intimidation of a journalist by destroying their private property138. The 
Mapping  Media  Freedom  platform  has  registered  seven  new  alerts,  including  the  above-
mentioned incident and another incident involving damage to a journalist’s private property, 
in  addition  to  one  harassment  and  four  intimidation  cases139.  The  lack  of  specific  anti-
strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) legislation and the limited awareness 
of this issue among judges, lawyers, and journalists remain obstacles to effectively protecting 
journalists  and  public  critics  from  SLAPPs.  However,  certain  existing  provisions  could 
provide some level of protection in such cases140. In the context of lawsuits concerning insult 
and defamation, data for 2024 shows that there were 15 cases involving journalists or media 
outlets  as  either  the  plaintiff  or  defendant.  This  represents  an  increase  compared  to  2023, 
when 12 such cases were recorded141. Shortcomings in journalists' working conditions persist, 
notably, the short-term or part-time contracts  without  health and social insurance coverage, 
unpaid  overtime  and  low  wages,  which  contribute  to  self-censorship  and  influence  over 
editorial  content  by  media  owners142.  The  MPM  2025  reports  a  medium-low  risk  for 
journalistic profession, standards, and protection143. 

IV.  OTHER INSTITUTIONAL ISSUES RELATED TO CHECKS AND BALANCES 

The Parliament is implementing the new Rules of Procedure, which were adopted with 
the aim of improving its oversight and efficiency. As previously reported, the new Rules of 
Procedure  of  the  Parliament  were  adopted  in  November  2023,  with  a  view  to  improve  its 
functioning,  notably  concerning  organising  public  hearings,  the  parliamentary  calendar  and 
its  role  in  deciding  on  shortened  legislative  procedures.  The  newly  formed  Parliament 
convened on 28 May 2024144, and its new Rules of Procedure entered into force145. The rules 
have  so  far  had  a  positive  effect  on  the  Parliament’s  operational  efficiency;  however,  their 

135   Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025a),  p.  61.  In  2024,  the  Association  of  Journalists  registered  5 
incidents:  1  was  a  case  of  unauthorised  monitoring,  recording,  and  distribution  of  video  concerning  a 
journalist, 1 as a destruction of property, 1 was online attack, 1 was a physical attack and 1 was arbitrary 
detention of a journalist. 

136   2024  Enlargement  Report,  North  Macedonia,  p.  20;  2024  Rule  of  Law  Report,  North  Macedonia,  p.  20. 
With the reform of the Criminal Code in February 2023, journalists have been granted special protection by 
being  recognised  as  a  protected  group,  similar  to  public  officials.  This  change  allows  the  Public 
Prosecutor’s Office to independently initiate proceedings when a journalist or media worker is attacked. 

137   Country visit, North Macedonia, Association of Journalists. 
138   Council of Europe (2025). 
139   European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (2025). 
140   2024 Rule of Law Report, North Macedonia, p. 20. The 2022 amendments to the Law on Civil Liability for 
Insult and Defamation significantly reduced the potential non-pecuniary damages imposed on media outlets 
and journalists in defamation lawsuits. 

141   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 60.  
142   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 9, 37; Media Pluralism Monitor (2025).  
143   Media  Pluralism  Monitor  (2025):  “North  Macedonia  is  free  of  killings  or  direct  physical  attacks  of 

journalist.”, p. 16; 2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 36. 

144   The 10th legislature of the Parliament, which concluded its term in May 2024, became the first since 2006 

to complete a full four-year mandate. 

145   2024 Rule of Law Report, North Macedonia, p. 22.  

16 

 
 
 
long-term impacts are yet to be determined. Moreover, the drafting of a new Code of Ethics 
started  in  March  2025,  designed  to  prevent  conflicts  of  interest  while  promoting  trust  and 
integrity.  By  May  2025,  nine  inter-party  groups  were  established  on  anti-corruption, 
environment,  rights  of  persons  with  disabilities,  Club  of  Women  MPs,  Roma,  the  Crimea 
Platform, youth policies, the Berlin Process and the commitments under Growth Plan Reform 
Agenda, which creates the premises for advancing the legislative work in these domains146.  

Challenges  remain  regarding  parliamentary  appointments  to  independent  institutions, 
which  raise  concerns  about  merit-based  selections.  The  selection  procedures  in  the 
Parliamentary Committee on Election and Appointment Issues presented shortcomings, as on 
several occasions candidates who were selected did not have relevant professional experience 
or  did  not  meet  the  qualification  criteria147.  Appointments  procedures  are  at  times 
significantly  delayed,  especially 
long-awaited  appointments  of  Deputy 
the 
Ombudsperson, or the Public Service Broadcaster’s Programme Council.  

for 

Shortcomings  remain  in  implementing  processes  for  inclusive  and  evidence-based 
policymaking.  While  coordination  between  the  Government  and  Parliament  on  legislative 
activities  has  been  effective,  a  significant  number  of  Government  draft  laws  submitted  to 
Parliament  are  not  included  in  the  original  Government  legislative  plan  and  do  not  have 
supporting documents, such as Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) reports, which impede 
an  effective  scrutiny  and  debate.  Additionally,  the  use  of  policy  monitoring  and  ex-post 
evaluation  tools  is  not  entirely  effective  in  practice148.  The  Single  National  Electronic 
Register  of  Regulations  (ENER)  platform149  is  used  for  consultations150,  but  it  does  not 
always  host  the  final  versions  of  documents  approved  by  the  Government.  Monitoring  the 
outcomes of the public consultations is sometimes ineffective, making it difficult to evaluate 
their  quality  or  impact  on  policy  design.  The  new  Rules  of  Procedure  of  the  Parliament 
strengthened the Parliaments’ role to ensure that the required impact assessments are carried 
out by providing for the possibility to request lacking impact assessments for laws. However, 
it is too early to assess the effectiveness of this change in practice151. 

Less  than  half  of  the  companies  surveyed  in  North  Macedonia  express  high  levels  of 
confidence  in  the  effectiveness  of  investment  protection.  About  37%  of  companies  are 
very or fairly confident that investments are protected by law and courts152. The main reason 
among companies for their lack of confidence is the concerns about the quality, efficiency or 

146   Country visit North Macedonia, representatives of the Parliament. 
147   Examples include the process for election of members to the Council of Public Prosecutors, to the Agency 
for Audio and Audiovisual Services (see in detail above Pillar III), and to the Commission for Prevention 
and  Protection  Against  Discrimination.  At  times,  the  Committee  proposals  were  later  withdrawn. 
Information received in the context of the country visit to North Macedonia, civil society organisations.  

148   2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, pp. 22, 24.  
149   The  Single  National  Electronic  Register  of  Regulations  (ENER)  is  the  main  tool  for  consultation  on 
legislative  proposals  prior  to  their  submission  in  Government  procedure,  with  a  deadline  of  30  days  for 
comments.  

150   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 64, 79: Out of 193 draft laws drafted by the Government in 
2024, 88 draft laws were subject to regulatory impact assessment. 30 draft laws (34%) were published on 
ENER,  which  represents  a  decrease  of  17.39  percentage  points  compared  to  2023  (51.39%).  The  total 
number of comments from stakeholders is 158, of which 21 comments are from civil society organisations 
(13.3%). 

151   SIGMA (2025)  
152   Flash Eurobarometer 555 (2025). 

17 

 
 
 
the independence of the justice system153. Further, 37% perceive the level of independence of 
the public procurement review body (State Commission for Public Procurement Appeals) as 
very  or  fairly  good154,  while  31%  perceive  the  level  of  independence  of  the  national 
competition  authority  (Commission  for  the  Protection  of  Competition)  as  very  or  fairly 
good155.  

On 1 January 2025, North Macedonia had 18 leading judgments of the European Court 
of  Human  Rights  pending  implementation,  an  increase  of  5  compared  to  the  previous 
year156. On 1 January 2025 North  Macedonia’s  rate of leading  judgments  from the past  10 
years  that  had  been  implemented  was  at  65%  (compared  to  71%  in  2024;  35%  remained 
pending), and the average time that the judgments had been pending implementation was 3 
years  and  3  months  (compared  to  3  years  and  9  months  in  2024)157.  The  oldest  group  of 
leading  judgments,  pending  implementation  for  more  than  14  years,  concerns  violations  of 
the applicants'  right to  liberty on account  of the  lack of concrete and sufficient grounds for 
their detention158. As regards the respect of payment deadlines, on 31 December 2024 there 
were 2 cases in total awaiting confirmation of payments (compared to 9 in 2023)159. On 16 
June 2025, the number of leading judgments pending implementation had increased to 20160.  

The role of the Constitutional Court in the monitoring and enforcement of its decisions 
has  been  strengthened.  In  June  2024,  the  Constitutional  Court  amended  its  internal  act 
regulating  its  functioning161.  Among  the  changes,  the  Court  is  now  enabled  to  specify  the 
manner and timeframe for enforcement of the decision and provide guidance to the institution 
responsible  for  adopting  the  act  in  question.  To  avoid  a  legal  vacuum,  the  Court  can  set  a 
deadline to address the Court’s guidance before a final decision to repeal or annul the act is 
taken.  The  Court’s  capacities  to  monitor  the  execution  of  its  decisions  have  also  been 
strengthened162. These changes are a significant improvement and have also been welcomed 
by  civil  society163.  In  May  2025,  the  Administrative  Court  annulled  a  2023  election  of  a 
Constitutional  Court  judge  based  on  unlawful  and  erroneous  selection  procedure  by  the 
Judicial Council and election in Parliament. 

Financial  and  human  resource  constraints  continue  to  affect  the  functioning  of  the 
Ombudsperson’s Office and of the Commission for Prevention and Protection Against 

153   Flash Eurobarometer 555 (2025). 33% of the surveyed investors perceive the frequent changes in legislation 
or  concerns  about  quality  of  law-making  process  as  a  reason  for  the  lack  of  confidence  in  investment 
protection. 

154   Flash Eurobarometer 555 (2025). 
155   Flash Eurobarometer 555 (2025). 
156   For an explanation of the supervision process, see the website of the Council of Europe.   
157   All figures calculated by the European Implementation Network (EIN) and based on the number of cases 
that are considered pending at the annual cut-off date of 1 January 2025. EIN (2025), written input, p. 2. 
158   Judgment of the ECtHR, 28169/08, Vasilkoski and Others v. the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, 

pending implementation since 2011.  

159   Council of Europe (2025), p. 157. 
160   Data according to the online database of the Council of Europe (HUDOC). 
161   Constitutional Court (2024). 
162   Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025a),  pp.  66-71.  In  case  of  non-execution,  the  Court  may  adopt  a 
relevant resolution, and in such cases shall notify the public prosecutor's office with competence, as well as 
the  authority  responsible  for  appointing  or  electing  the  head  of  the  body  or  institution  that  failed  to 
implement the decision of the Court. 

163   Ministry of Justice (2023). Nevertheless, as stated in the Judicial strategy 2024-2028, strengthening the 
role of the Constitutional Court is a general objective of the Strategy, including through a potential reform 
of the constitutional framework of the Court.  

18 

 
 
 
Discrimination. The Parliament did not adopt the long-awaited amendments to the Law on 
the  Ombudsperson’s  Office,  which  is  necessary  to  upgrade  its  'B'  accreditation  status 
according to the Paris Principles. The Ombudsperson’s Office lacks seven of the ten Deputy 
Ombudspersons,  and  five  positions  were  vacant  since  May  2023.  A  new  vacancy 
announcement for seven posts was published in April 2025164. The Office continues to lack 
the financial and human resources needed to function independently and effectively. In 2024, 
no further staff was neither hired nor promoted due  to a lack of budgetary approval. Of the 
183 planned positions, only 85 are currently filled, and the institutions’ budget declined from 
2024 to 2025165. Its operational budget continues to require approval by the executive branch, 
which negatively affects its financial independence166. Despite these challenges, in 2024, the 
Ombudsperson’s  Office  provided  743  individual  recommendations  to  public  bodies  on 
eliminating established violations of the rights of citizens, which is an increase compared to 
the previous year. The acceptance rate  by the public bodies concerned increased slightly to 
74.8%167.  In  December  2024,  the  Parliament  discussed  the  2023  Annual  Report  from  the 
Ombudsperson’s Office168  and measures to  address identified shortcomings; however, there 
have been no advances in follow-up by the Government169. The Civil Control Mechanism170 
and the National Preventive Mechanism within the Ombudsperson’s Office do not have the 
adequate  financial  resources,  equipment,  and  offices171.  As  regards  the  Commission  for  the 
Prevention  and  Protection  against  Discrimination,  it  has  effectively  handled  a  growing 
number  of  complaints.  However,  similar  to  the  Office  of  the  Ombudsperson’s  Office,  the 
main challenges hindering the Commission's progress are its limited financial independence 
and a shortage of administrative staff172.  

The Government initiated measures to enhance cooperation with civil society, while civil 
society  raised  challenges,  including  online  hate  speech.  Civil  society  organisations 
function within a ‘narrowed’173 civil society space. Some civil society organisations working 
on  sensitive  areas  have  reported  experiencing  an  increasing  adverse  environment,  and  in 

164   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 75.  
165   Government of North Macedonia (2025), written input, p. 72. Data refers to December 2024. In addition, 

two people had their employment terminated due to retirement.  

166   Country Visit North Macedonia, Ombudsperson’s Office; 2024 Enlargement Report, North Macedonia, p. 

34. 

167   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 73: In 2024, out of 743 individual recommendations, opinions 
and suggestions given on the manner of eliminating the established violations of the rights of citizens and 
other persons, 556 or 74.8% were accepted. 

168   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 62, 63. The Parliament proposed measures to implement the 
Ombudsperson's  recommendations  to  address  the  issues  outlined  in  the  report  and  forwarded  these  to  the 
Government on 27 December 2024. 

169   Country  Visit  North  Macedonia,  Ombudsperson’s  Office.  The  Ombudsperson’s  Office  provides 
recommendations  in  its  annual  report  to  the  parliament,  which  is  tasked  to  develop  measures  and  submit 
these to the Government. The government in turn should provide bi-yearly reports on the follow-up.  

170   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 23.: In 2024 the Civil Control Mechanism handled a total of 
25 cases (15 related to members of the prison police, and 10 to the police), six more than in 2023. Three 
cases were initiated on its own initiative. 

171   Financial  resources  are  lacking  to  employ  the  parliament  elected  representative  from  civil  society  to  the 
Civil  Control  Mechanisms,  thus,  the  mechanism  is  not  functioning  as  intended  but  is  only  operational 
through employees by the Ombudsperson Office. Justice, Freedom and Security Subcommittee with North 
Macedonia (2025).  

172   2024 Enlargement report, North Macedonia, p. 9. 
173   CIVICUS (2025). Rating given on a five-category scale defined as: open, narrowed, obstructed, repressed 

and closed. 

19 

 
 
 
some  instances  attacks  against  them,  especially  on  social  media174.  Nonetheless,  with  input 
from civil society organisations, and in cooperation with line ministries and the Council for 
cooperation  between  the  Government  and  Civil  Society,  the  General  Secretariat  of  the 
Government  has  prepared  the  new  Strategy  for  cooperation  with  and  development  of  civil 
society  2025-2028.  Furthermore,  in  January  2025  the  Government  adopted  a  Decision 
regarding  the  allocation  of  state  funds  to  civil  society  organisations175.  In  March  2025, 
following a two-year boycott by civil society organisations176, the Government appointed the 
members of the Council for Cooperation between the Government and Civil Society177, and 
they met for the first time in April.  

174   Country visit, North Macedonia, civil society organisations. 
175   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), p. 79: On January 14, 2025, the Government adopted a Decision 
on the conditions for the allocation and use of funds for financing the programme activities of associations 
and foundations from the Budget of the Republic of North Macedonia for 2025 (Official Gazette No.11/25). 
The  Decision  establishes  the  conditions  for  the  allocation  and  use  of  funds  for  financial  support  to  civil 
society  organisations  from  the  budget  of  the  Ministry  of  Inter-Community  Relations,  the  criteria  for 
assessing  the  quality  of  projects,  the  composition  of  the  Commission  for  the  allocation  of  funds  and  the 
manner of reporting upon the completion of projects. 

176   CSOs had been boycotting the Council’s work since March 2022 as previously reported in the 2024 Rule of 

Law Report, North Macedonia, p. 24. 

177   Government of North Macedonia (2025a), pp. 80, 81. 

20 

 
 
 
 
Annex I: List of sources in alphabetical order* 

* The list of contributions received in the context of the consultation for the 2025 Rule of Law report 
can 
https://commission.europa.eu/publications/2025-rule-law-report-targeted-
found 
stakeholder-consultation_en.  

be 

at 

24.mk (2025), Mickoski to Kocevski: He should resign and not buy time  (Мицкоски до Коцевски: 
Да  си  поднесе  оставка  и  да  не  купува  време),  https://24.mk/details/mickoski-do-kocevski-da-si-
podnese-ostavka-i-da-ne-kupuva-vreme.  

360stepeni.mk  (2025b),  AJM:  Political  calculations  in  the  selection  of  AAAVMS  members  are 
unacceptable  (ЗНМ:  Политички  калкулации  при  изборот  на  членови  во  ААВМУ  се 
неприфатливи),  https://360stepeni.mk/znm-politichki-kalkulatsii-pri-izborot-na-chlenovi-vo-aavmu-
se-neprifatlivi/. 

360stepeni.mk (2025a), The law that will make online portals into media outlets is ready — here are 
the  conditions  (Стокмен  е  законот  со  кој  интернет-порталите  ќе  станат  медиуми,  ова  се 
условите), https://360stepeni.mk/kratko-video-stokmen-e-zakonot-so-koj-internet-portalite-ke-stanat-
mediumi-ova-se-uslovite/. 

4News.mk  (2025),  Government  halts  dismissal  procedure  for  State  Public  Prosecutor  Ljupco 
Kocevski  (Владата  ја  запира  постапката  за  разрешување  на  државниот  јавен  обвинител 
Љупчо  Коцевски),  https://4news.mk/vladata-ja-zapira-postapkata-za-razreshuvane-na-drzhavniot-
javen-obvinitel-lupcho-kotsevski/. 

Academy  of  Judges  and  Public  Prosecutors,  public  statement  of  the  Managing  Board  (2025) 
https://jpacademy.gov.mk/%d0%b8%d0%b7%d0%b2%d0%b5%d1%81%d1%82%d1%83%d0%b2%
d0%b0%d1%9a%d0%b5-2/ 

Balkan  Insight  (2025),  PM’s  Assault  on  Judicial  ‘Swamp’  Raises  Fears  for  North  Macedonia 
Democracy, 
https://balkaninsight.com/2025/03/11/pms-assault-on-judicial-swamp-raises-fears-for-
north-macedonia-democracy/.  

(2024), 

CEPEJ 
https://www.coe.int/en/web/cepej/towards-a-better-evaluation-of-the-results-of-judicial-reforms-in-
the-western-balkans-dashboard-western-balkans-.  

Dashboard  Western 

Balkans 

2023 

Data 

– 

Collection, 

Channel  5  Television  (2025),  Mickoski:  After  the  interpellations,  I  expect  resignations  from  the 
members of the Judicial Council (Мицкоски: По интерпелациите очекувам оставки од членовите 
на Судски совет), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpF_yuG1xz4.  

Citizen Association Institute for Human Rights, Skopje (2023), Monitoring report on the work of the 
Judicial Council August-December 2024, en-izveshtaj-sudski-sovet-avg-dek-2024.pdf. 

CIVICUS (2025), North Macedonia, https://monitor.civicus.org/country/macedonia/.  

Constitutional  Court  (2024),  Internal  Act  of  the  Constitutional  Court  of  the  Republic  of  North 
Macedonia, https://ustavensud.mk/мк/акт-на-судот.  

Council of Europe, Platform to promote the protection of journalism and safety of journalists (2025), 
North Macedonia, https://fom.coe.int/en/pays/detail/11709590. 

Council  of  Europe:  Venice  Commission  (2010),  Independence  of  the  Judicial  System,  Part  II:  The 
Prosecution Service, CDL-AD(2010)040. 

21 

 
 
Council of Europe: Venice Commission (2025a), Opinion on the Draft Law on the Judicial Council, 
CDL-AD(2025)026 

Council  of  Europe:  Venice  Commission  (2025b),  Compilation  of  Venice  Commission  Opinions  and 
Reports Concerning Courts (CDL-PI(2025)002).Council of Public Prosecutors (2025d), Explanation 
of the decision for the election of public prosecutors in the Basic Public Prosecutions of the Republic 
of North Macedonia, https://sjorm.gov.mk/obrazlozhenie-na-odlukite-za-izbor/.  

Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  (2025c),  Decision  number  02-45/2,  https://sjorm.gov.mk/wp-
content/uploads/2025/03/odluka-za-objav-oglas-12.03.2025.pdf. 

Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  (2025b),  Announcement  of  the  22nd  Session  (Соопштение  за 
the 
одржана  седница),  https://sjorm.gov.mk/soopshtenie-za-odrzhana-sednica-17/.  Record  of 
Council session, https://sjorm.gov.mk/zapisnik-od-22-sednica-na-sjorsm/.  

Council of Public Prosecutors (2025a), Annual report on the work of the Council for 2024  (Годишен 
извештај за работата на Советот за 2024 година), https://sjorm.gov.mk/godishen-izveshtaj-za-
rabotata-na-sovetot-za-2024-godina/.  

 Council  of  Media  Ethics  (2021),  Ethical  guidelines  for  online  media  in  North  Macedonia, 
https://semm.mk/en/pravna-ramka-3/2015-11-01-07-10-08/kodeks/851-guidelines-for-ethical-
reporting-for-online-media  

EEAS (2025), Press release 17.03.2025, 19th meeting of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement 
subcommittee with North Macedonia on Justice, Freedom and Security 

https://www.eeas.europa.eu/delegations/north-macedonia/19th-meeting-stabilisation-and-association-
agreement-subcommittee-north-macedonia-justice-freedom_en?s=229 

Commission 

European 
https://enlargement.ec.europa.eu/document/download/5f0c9185-ce46-46fc-bf44- 
82318ab47e88_en?filename=North%20Macedonia%20Report%202024.pdf. 

Enlargement 

Report, 

(2024), 

2024 

North  Macedonia, 

European 
(2023), 
https://enlargement.ec.europa.eu/north-macedonia-report-2023_en  

Enlargement 

Commission 

2023 

Report, 

North  Macedonia, 

European  Parliament  (2025),  Draft  Report  on  the  2023  and  2024  Commission  reports  on  North 
Macedonia, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/AFET-PR-769915_EN.pdf. 

European  Policy 
https://epi.org.mk/wp-content/uploads/Rule-of-Law-in-View-of-EU-Accession_4-2.pdf. 

(2024),  Quarterly  Brief  October-December  2024. 

Institute  –  Skopje 

Government  of  North  Macedonia  (2025),  additional  written  contribution  for  the  2025  Rule  of 
Law Report. 

Government of North Macedonia (2025a), written input to the 2024 Rule from the Government of 
North Macedonia for the 2025 Rule of Law Report. 

GRECO (2024), 4th Evaluation Round – Second Addendum to the Second Compliance Report, North 
Macedonia,  GrecoRC4(2023)21,  https://rm.coe.int/fourth-evaluation-round-corruption-prevention-in-
respect-of-members-of/1680aec93a.  

IPA  II  Project  “EU  Support  for  Rule  of  Law”  (2025),  Report  from  the  consultation  process  with 
judges and the expert public on the need of amending the law on judicial council of the Republic of 
North Macedonia.  

22 

 
 
IPA  II  Project  “EU  Support  for  Rule  of  Law”  (2023-2026),  Strengthening  the  rule  of  law  in  the 
Republic of North Macedonia, https://rolaw.mk/the-project/  

Judicial Council (2024b), Promotion of the System for Audio and Video Recording of Court Hearings 
(Промоција  на  Системот  за  тонско  (аудио)  и  видео  снимање  на  судските  расправи), 
http://sud.mk/wps/portal/ssrm/sud/vesti/. 

Judicial  Council  (2024c).  Communication  strategy  of  the  Judicial  Council  and  the  courts  of  the 
Republic  of  North  Macedonia  (2024-2028),  (Комуникациска  стратегија  на  Судскиот  совет  и 
судовите на Република Северна Македонија (2024-2028), Подзаконски акти (vsrm.mk) 

Judicial  Council 
http://sud.mk/wps/portal/ssrm/sud/vesti/.  

(2024a),  Letter 

from 

the 

former  President  of 

the  Judicial  Council, 

Judicial Council (2025c), 510th session of the Judicial Council of the Republic of North Macedonia, 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ko1PoroBDk. 

Judicial Council (2025b), 518th session of the Judicial Council of the Republic of North Macedonia, 
http://sud.mk/wps/portal/ssrm/sud/vesti/.  

Judicial Council (2025a), 521st session of the Judicial Council of the Republic of North Macedonia, 
http://sud.mk/wps/portal/ssrm/sud/vesti.  

Macedonian  Institute  for  Media  (2025),  The  Future  of  the  Media  in  North  Macedonia  -  Facts  and 
Trends, https://mim.org.mk/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ourmedia_nmk-eng_25-01-25.pdf  

Ministry of Justice (2024a), Comprehensive overview of the status of implementation of the activities 
of the Judicial Strategy for 2024-2028 

Ministry of Justice (2023), Strategy for Judicial Reform 2024-2028 

https://www.pravda.gov.mk/Upload/Documents/%D0%9F%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%BB%
D0%BE%D0%B3%20%D0%A0%D0%B0%D0%B7%D0%B2%D0%BE%D1%98%D0%BD%D0%
B0%20%D0%A1%D0%B5%D0%BA%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%2
0%D0%A1%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%B3%D0%B8%D1%98%D0%B0
%20%D0%B7%D0%B0%20%D0%9F%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D1%81%D1%83%
D0%B4%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B2%D0%BE%202024%20-%202027.pdf 

Ministry of Justice (2025), Assessment of the Supreme Court - Oversight Report (ЗАПИСНИК – Cд 
надзор 
суд), 
https://www.pravda.gov.mk/Upload/Documents/%D0%97%D0%90%D0%9F%D0%98%D0%A1%D
0%9D%D0%98%D0%9A%20%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%B4%D0%B7%D0%BE%D1%80-
%D0%92%D1%80%D1%85%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B5%D0%BD%20%D1%81%D1%83%D0%
B4.pdf.  

Врховен 

Bo 

Mia.mk (2025a), Judicial Council members cannot be dismissed by force, fight to continue through 
public  pressure:  PM,  https://mia.mk/en/story/judicial-council-members-cannot-be-dismissed-by-
force-fight-to-continue-through-public-pressure-pm. 

Mia.mk  (2025b),  Council  of  Public  Prosecutors  votes  against  Ljupcho  Kocevski’s  dismissal, 
https://mia.mk/index.php/story/council-of-public-prosecutors-votes-against-ljupcho-kocevskis-
dismissal. 

23 

 
 
Mkd.mk (2025) The Government has officially requested the dismissal of Public Prosecutor Kocevski 
(И  официјално  Владата  побара  разрешување  на 
јавниот  обвинител  Коцевски) 
https://mkd.mk/makedonija/i-oficijalno-vladata-pobara-razreshuvanje-na-javniot-obvinitel-kocevski/.  

National  Democratic  Institute  (2023),  Corruption  And  Quality  Of  Public  Services  In  North 
Macedonia:  Assessing  Healthcare  And  The  Civil  Registry  Through  Public  Opinion  Research, 
https://www.ndi.org/publications/corruption-and-quality-public-services-north-macedonia-assessing-
healthcare-and-civil.  

Parliament  of 
https://www.sobranie.mk/material-details.nspx?param=b811d2fc-52a9-468c-9920-8c5964672d9a.  

the  Republic  of  North  Macedonia 

registration  n.  08-2392/1, 

(2024), 

Parliament of the Republic of North Macedonia (2025), Session of the Assembly No. 40, Interpellation 
on the work of the members of the judicial council Vesna Dameva, Pavlina Crvenovska, Selim Ademi, 
Tanja 
https://www.sobranie.mk/detali-na-
sednica.nspx?sittingId=a12327be-4550-4161-9bd9-fa6b3b48ee07. 

Cacarova-Ilievska, 

Miljasim 

Mustafa, 

Prizma.mk (2024), Risk of misuse of the money for election advertising (Ризик од злоупотреба со 
парите за изборни реклами), https://prizma.mk/rizik-od-zloupotreba-od-parite-za-izborni-reklami/.  

SIGMA (2025), Public administration in the Republic of North Macedonia 2024. Assessment against 
the Principles of Public Administration, 
https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2025/01/public-administration-in-the-
republic-of-north-macedonia-2024_03a4d4f2/071bad9d-en.pdf. 

State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2024a), The State Commission for the Prevention of 
Corruption calls for transparency and analysis in the process of adopting amendments to the Law on 
Public Procurement (Државната комисија за спречување на корупцијата повикува на 
транспарентност и анализа при донесување на измените на Законот за јавни набавки), 
https://dksk.mk/mk/соопштение-за-законот-за-јавни-набавк/.  

State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2024b), The State Commission for the Prevention of 
Corruption  has  become  a  member  of  the  anti-corruption  network  EPAC/EACN  (Државната 
комисија  за  спречување  на  корупцијата  стана  членка  на  антикорупциската  мрежа 
EPAC/EACN), 
https://dksk.mk/mk/државната-комисија-за-спречување-на-к-
9/.https://dksk.mk/mk/државната-комисија-за-спречување-на-к-9/ 

State  Commission  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  (2024c),  Presentation  of  the  special  reports  on  the 
2024  presidential  and  parliamentary  elections  (Презентација  на  посебните  извештаи  за 
претседателските  и  парламентарните  избори  2024),  https://dksk.mk/пресентација-на-
посебните-извештаи-з/. 

State  Commission  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  (2025a),  Annual  report  on  the  work  of  the  State 
Commission for the Prevention of Corruption for the year 2024 (Годишен извештај за работата 
на  Државната  комисија  за  спречување  на  корупцијата  за  2024  година),  https://dksk.mk/wp-
content/uploads/2025/03/ГИ-за-работата-на-ДКСК-за-2024-за-web-без-прилози.pdf.  

State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (2025b), Annual report on the implementation of the 
National Strategy for Prevention of Corruption and Conflict of Interest 2021–2025 for the period from 
January  1,  2024  to  December  31,  2024  (Годишен  извештај  за  спроведување  на  Националната 
стратегија  за  спречување  на  корупцијата  и  судирот  на  интереси  2021-2025  за  период 
01.01.2024 
https://dksk.mk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Годишен-извештај-
Национална-Стратегија-2024.pdf.  

31.12.2024), 

– 

24 

 
 
State  Commission  for  Prevention  of  Corruption  (2025),  Register  of  lobbyists  and  lobbying 
organisations (Регистар на лобисти и лоби организации), https://lobisti.dksk.mk/all-lobbyists. 

Supreme  Court  of  the  Republic  of  North  Macedonia  (2024c)  In  the  Supreme  Court,  based  on  the 
commitments of the Council for Open Judiciary, new services have been prepared for the social rights 
of  citizens  (Во  Врховниот  суд,  врз  основа  на  заложбите  на  Советот  за  отворено  судство, 
подготвени 
граѓаните), 
сервиси 
http://sud.mk/wps/portal/vsrm/sud/vesti/. 

социјалните 

права 

нови 

на 

за 

се 

Supreme  Court  of  the  Republic  of  North  Macedonia  (2024a),  The  Supreme  Court  and  the  Judicial 
Media  Council  have  promoted  recommendations  for  recording  and  photographing  in  the  courtroom 
(Врховниот  суд  и  Судско-медиумскиот  совет  ги  промовираа  препораките  за  снимање  и 
фотографирање во судница), http://sud.mk/wps/portal/vsrm/sud/vesti/. 

Supreme Court of the Republic of North Macedonia (2024b), Report on the visits of the President of 
the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Republic  of  North  Macedonia  to  the  Basic  and  Appellate  Courts, 
http://www.vsrm.mk/wps/wcm/connect/vsrm/99c7c6ba-380e-4054-a50b-
c45da8250a42/%D0%B8%D0%B7%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%88%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B8+21.1
0.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a
&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CV
ID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a&CVID=pe6EW4a.  

Telma.com.mk (2025), Mickoski announces protests if the five members of the Judicial Council do 
not  resign:  I  will  be  in  the  front  rows  (Мицкоски  најавува  протести  доколку  5-те  членови  на 
редови), 
Судски  Совет 
https://telma.com.mk/2025/03/14/miczkoski-najavuva-protesti-dokolku-5-te-chlenovi-na-sudski-
sovet-ne-si-dadat-ostavki-ke-bidam-vo-prvite-redovi/. 

оставки:  Ќе 

првите 

дадат 

бидам 

си 

не 

во 

Transparency 
https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2024.  

International 

(2024), 

Corruption 

Perceptions 

Index, 

Transparency 
https://transparency.mk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/corruption_barometer_2024.pdf. 

International  Macedonia 

Corruption 

(2025), 

Barometer 

2024, 

U.S.  Department  of  State  (2024),  2024  Investment  Climate  Statements:  North  Macedonia,  
https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-investment-climate-statements/north-macedonia/. 

USAID (2024), Analysis of factors which influence the degree of  implementation of the strategy for 
prevention of corruption and conflict of interest 2021-2025, [hyperlink]. 

25 

 
 
Annex II: Country visit to North Macedonia 

The Commission services held virtual and hybrid meetings in March 2025 with: 

•  Academy for Judges and Prosecutors  
•  Agency for Audio and Audiovisual Media Services  
•  Agency for the Protection of Free Access to Public Information  
•  Association of Journalists  
•  Association of Judges 
•  Association  of  on-line  media;  RESIS  Institute  (Research  Institute  on  Social 

Development) 

Independent Trade Union of Journalists and Media Workers; 
Institute for Democracy “Societas Civilis”  
Institute for Human Rights 
Institute of Communication Studies - IKS 

•  Association of Prosecutors  
•  Bar Association 
•  BIRN Macedonia 
•  Center for Civil Communication 
•  Center for Legal Research and Analysis / Центар за правни истражувања и анализи 
•  Coalition All for Fair Trials 
•  Constitutional Court 
•  Council of Europe Mission to Skopje 
•  Council of Media Ethics 
•  Council of Public Prosecutors  
•  European Policy Institute 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•  Judicial Council  
•  Judicial Media Council  
•  Macedonian Centre for International Cooperation - MCIC 
•  Macedonian Institute for Media – MIM 
•  Meeting with the experts of the “EU Support for Rule of Law” IPA Project 
•  Metamorphosis Foundation 
•  Ministry of Interior 
•  Ministry of Justice 
•  Ombudsperson Office 
•  OSCE Mission to North Macedonia 
•  Parliament  
•  Public Prosecutor’s Offices (PPOs)  
•  State Audit Office 
•  State Commission for Prevention of Corruption (SCPC) 
•  Supreme Court 
•  Transparency International – Macedonia 

26 

 
 
 
 
 
 
* The Commission also met the following organisations in a number of horizontal meetings:  

•  Amnesty International 
•  Araminta 
•  Civil Liberties Union for Europe 
•  Civil Society Europe 
•  European Civic Forum 
•  European Partnership for Democracy 
•  European Youth Forum, 
• 

• 

International Commission of Jurists 
International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) 
JEF Europe 

• 
•  Philea – Philanthropy Europe Association. 
•  Transparency International  

27