INSTITUTE FOR ECONOMIC research AND POLICIES FINANCE THINK SKOPJE

Total budget: MKD 1,799,504

Timeframe: 01.06.20200 – 31.05.2022

CONSTITUENTS

The economic and social policy makers, political parties, economy journalists at national and local level, as well as CSOs which have been founded with a mission to contribute to resolving some economic problem or touch upon an economic problem in their work.

ON THE PROJECT SUPPORTED BY CIVICA MOBILITAS

Interactive and multisector mechanism for monitoring the fulfilment of political promises related to economy

BACKGROUND

Each election cycle in North Macedonia is related to political promises by the political parties. A political party was the first one in 2006-2007 to promote an economic election programme that included a number of goals and desired results, such as an economic growth, investments, unemployment, bigger budget revenues when decreasing taxes, capital expenditures of the state, decreasing the rates of social benefits, etc. Since then, the political parties, especially the bigger ones, have been trying to quantify their economic promises. However, the social awareness related to the prelection promises is not at a high level. On one side, the promises are taken for granted, without thinking about how plausible that are and what their cost is. On the other hand, the promises are largely fast forgotten, because there is no awareness and/or mechanism that would hold the politicians who have gained power accountable for their promises to their voters.

GOALS AND RESULTS

Goal – Raising the awareness with all stakeholders to promote credible, realistic and feasible promises by the political parties and their subsequent consistent fulfilment.

Objective – Promoting monitoring and measuring of economic goals and results of the political government programmes, by using evidence, findings and data and by stimulating a diverse social engagement.

RESULTS

• An established framework for measuring the economic goals and results, in the context of political and government programmes, by using evidence, findings and data;
• Created skills with the stakeholders on critical analysis of the possible and real results of the political promises in the economic part;
• The stakeholders enrich the public discourse by critical, argumented and lively debate on the plausibility results and expenses of the political promises in the economy.

ACTIVITIES

1. Establishing a measuring framework to monitor the economic goals and results, in the form of an interactive web platform;
2. Delphi questionnaire for achieving economic consensus for economic goals and results which are not quantified;
3. Meeting persons involved in the establishing a political government programme in the economy part;
4. On-line manual for using the measuring framework of the results as opposed to the political promises;
5. Measuring the effects and implications of the implementation/announcement for introducing measures promised in the programmes, via MK-MOD:
6. Workshop and trainings with the stakeholders;
7. Preparing a policy brief;
8. Panel debate and round table on the crucial economic promises, by involving the stakeholders;
9. Co-authorship (and mentoring) an economic programme and economic texts on a current economic theme;
10. Interactive tools: graphs, info graphs, GIF, Let’s Chat.