REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

PART II:
stimulated the growth rate of the Macedonian imports of 4.42% and the growth rate of
Macedonian exports of only 2.18% per year (Kikerkova, 2007:268).
Before signing the multilateral free trade agreement CEFTA-2006, the trade cooperation
with countries from the region was a form than a relity. The other countries in the region of
Western Balkans cannot boast with a better fate than the one of the Republic of Macedonia.
Pushed in the same “mold” of the export-de-stimulating, that is to say the import-stimulating
transition model (Croatia and Albania), totally dependent on the foreign aid (Bosnia and
Herzegovina), beginners in the process of reformation (Serbia and Montenegro), they, alike
the Republic of Macedonia, go “backwards” on the path of the economic and political
changes, lagging in every sense not only behind the developed countries, but also behind
the other transition economies. This is why the mutual economic contacts of the Western
Balkan countries are more of a formal character than of a real regional cooperation.
Signing the multilateral free trade agreement CEFTA-2006, the situation in the regional
foreign trade started to alter quantitatively. The scope of exchange goods with all countries
increases, and Macedonian exports exceeds the Macedonian imports. But the structure
of exchanged goods remained the same. The inference is that without changes in the
structure of export sector of the economy we can not expect a vivid economic growth
and development, and the trade deficit will persist as one of the major macroeconomic
problem.
The reasons for the bad economic situation in Macedonia, and its economic trade
cooperation should be looked for in the inadequate transitional model, the too technical
approach towards reforms, the strong insisting on stabilization instead on development
components, the emphasis on speed instead on efficiency, the “imported” economic policy,
the external shocks… All of them together resulted into negative economic performances.
We also disagree with comments saying that a part of the blame for the negative situation
in the domain of regional cooperation is to be searched in the incapability of the managerial
structure in the Macedonian industry, which is allegedly “not restructured and market
oriented.” We deeply believe that the management is not just the reason, but more the
consequence of the development and the surroundings in which it is located. So, assuming
again, if the managers are irreproachably doing their job, the regional trends of cooperation
will not experience a positive turning point without institutional changes. On the other
hand, the Republic of Macedonia does not have a proper export strategy, and therefore
it does not have an elaborated export politics that could stimulate the exports production
at least within the limits of the rules of the EU and the WTO. “The export is no longer
a question of choice; it is the only option offering healthy perspectives on the long run”
(Temenugova, 2003). While claiming this, we take into consideration the undisputable
fact that the Republic of Macedonia actually does not have an export offer due to a very
simple fact – it has no adequate production (the Macedonian GDP has not yet reached
the level it used to have in 1989). The amortized equipment (80%), the low usage of the
capacities (20-30%), the high unemployment rate (34%), the lack of investments (domestic
and foreign), the raw material-base production structure, the high (internal and external)
154