Overall Objectives

• Assist the country in its transition to a market economy;
• Provide support to the competent national institutions in order to meet the challenges and requi-rements of the acquis communautaire and the WTO. Specific Objectives
• Adoption, amendment and/or the repeal of primary or secondary legislation in order to complete the process of approximation of the national legislation to the acquis communautaire;
• Drafting of comprehensive user-friendly relevant texts, guidelines and standards for proper enforcement of the newly adopted and harmonized laws;
• Further assistance to the MoE in assessing legal options and policy implications in the light of Macedonia’s specific constraints and objectives;
• Provision of regulatory impact assessment studies of key legislation and areas of intervention;
• Support to field research in order for the laws’ implementation and impact assessment to be better understood by the administration;
• Support to the MoE with regard to the proper enforcement of the trade and public enterprises legislation;
• Ensuring ratification of key international conventions facilitating trade;
• Increase of transparency and participation of stakeholders in the drafting and implementation process;
• Increase of the public awareness through the dissemination of information and conferences related to the newly adopted legislation.

Strategies

The Project’s efforts will be mainly oriented towards:
• Fostering transparency in all areas of economic life (state aid, competition legislation, public enterprises)
• Strengthening the private sector (registration of companies, Chamber of Commerce, arbitration)
• organizing an efficient market surveillance system by encouraging the creation of an effective and independent system of control.

Results to be achieved

• Specific pieces of national legislation in compliance with the EU “acquis communautaire” and WTO requirements.
• Developed institutional infrastructure that will ensure proper enforcement of the new legislation;
• Developed functions, capacities and expertise to facilitate and liberalize trading structures and activities;
• Best commercial practices and consultation in law-making process increasingly applied by business entities;
• Recommendations for adoption and implementation of laws on public enterprises and on trade and international commercial arbitration (UNCITRAL models);
• Generated greater public awareness and policy advocacy capabilities among business community and civil society.

Key project activities

• Assist in the implementation and enforcement of the legislation in the areas of trade law, company law, consumer protection law, legislation related to the operation of the state market inspectorate, commercial arbitration, tourism and catering laws, competition law, law on public enterprises and utilities, etc.;
• Helping to develop and strengthen already existing ties with existing consumer associations, chambers of commerce and other relevant institutions and bodies;
• Defining and performing relevant training modules for groups of targeted individuals.

General activities

• Advise the MoE and make proposals on substantial, procedural and methodological issues in connection with the drafting of primary and secondary trade-related texts;
• Advise the MoE on legal and policy matters in connection with the reform of public enterprises/concessions/utilities cluster of laws in the context of decentralization;
• Increase capacities of selected staff in the implementation and enforcement of the new legal and institutional framework.