NATIONAL MEETING OF EXPERTS OF THE PROJECT "TAXES, INFORMAL ECONOMY AND CORRUPTION IN THE COUNTRIES FROM WESTERN BALKAN"
11/21/2013
The tax system, informal economy and corruption are significant social conditions of which depends directly the position of workers. It is good to talk openly and to build an overall strategy with respect to these matters, emphasized the President of CCM, PhD Zivko Mitrevski at today’s National Meeting of Experts held in CCM.
The meeting was held within the project "Taxes, informal economy and corruption in the Western Balkans", which began in March 2013 and covers trade unions in Macedonia, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina (Federation and Republika Srpska), Croatia and Kosovo. President Mitrevski noted that the informal economy as a negative social phenomenon is still quite present. The same applies to corruption. Attempts of the government and general of the governments in the region to reform the tax system are highly important for the unions because from there the situation of workers and the regulation of working conditions depend on.
The expert on economic affairs of CCM, Ljubica Dekovska presented the first draft report on long-term policy in the Republic of Macedonia, prepared by the National team in the project. The report was a good basis for a constructive discussion by the participants. The positions of the Union of Autonomous and Independent Trade Unions (UNASM) were presented by Divna Zmejkovska, Mimoza Vujoshevik, and from the Confederation of Free Trade Unions (KSS) Lidija Stamenkovska. At the meeting the coordinator of ILO Macedonia Emil Krstanoski was present while in broader discussion developed the general secretaries and other officials in the unions affiliated to CCM and representatives from UNASM and KSS.
During the discussion, representatives of trade unions stressed that all countries in the Western Balkans have the same problems with corruption, informal economy and tax policy. The project started in March 2013 in Sofia and will last until October 2015. So far several meetings were held including regional training of experts; information materials have been prepared on national levels, a regional meeting of economists and lawyers, as well as information and communications campaigns. According to the Agenda it is envisaged organization of other regional meetings, round tables, submitting suggestions and proposals as well as organization of a regional tripartite conference. The project is organized with the support of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Pan-European Committee (PERC) and the Federation of Norwegian trade unions (LO - Landsorganisasjonen i Norge).
