Today the leaders of the Western Balkan countries and the European Commissioner for Enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, will gather for the regional summit on the European Union’s economic growth plan for the region. The EU’s plan for the Western Balkans aims at the economic advancement of the region, accelerating necessary reforms, and attracting investments that can further the EU enlargement process with these countries. A similar summit for this plan was held on January 22 in Skopje, North Macedonia.
The new plan for economic growth in the Western Balkan countries, approved by the European Commission on November 8, 2023, is based on four pillars. The first pillar is “strengthening economic integration into the EU single market.” This will depend on the region’s countries aligning with the rules of the single market and simultaneously opening their markets to their neighboring countries in the relevant sectors. The second pillar of this plan is “strengthening economic integration within the Western Balkans through a common regional market.”
According to the EU’s experience, this will lead to a potential economic growth of 10 percent.
The third pillar of this plan is “accelerating fundamental reforms.” This entails rule of law enforcement, which also aids in attracting foreign direct investments and enhances regional stability. The fourth pillar of the European Commission’s new plan for economic growth in the Western Balkans is “increasing financial assistance to support reforms.” This includes the proposal for €6 billion in aid./abcnews.al
