The World Bank today approved a US$30 million Second Programmatic Development Policy Loan (PDPL 2) for the Republic of Macedonia. The project will support the Government in its effort to improve the investment climate and strengthen public sector governance. PDPL 2 is the second in what is expected to be a series of three loans over a three to four year period. The objective of the PDPL series is to assist the country in carrying out intensive structural and institutional reforms that are required for European Union integration.

The Government's macroeconomic policies have built an impressive track record of macroeconomic stability. Over the past decade, inflation has been held to a minimum and, unlike many countries in the region, external and public debt ratios have remained modest. Gross external debt and gross public debt have slowly fallen to about 40 percent of GDP.