North Macedonia

The Government of the Republic of North Macedonia has strengthened institutional responses toward gender-responsive governance with government policies and measures to shift the socio-economic landscape for rural women, addressing one of the most persistent gender inequalities in the region. The State Audit Office of North Macedonia led the first-ever regional cooperative audit on Sustainable Development Goal 5 (Gender Equality), in collaboration with the Supreme Audit Institutions of Kosovo and Albania. This regional audit was a result of the longstanding commitment and strategic engagement of UN WOMEN with key stakeholders, including the State Audit Office and Supreme Audit Institutions of neighbouring countries. The audit thematically focused on inclusion of rural women on the labour market. Findings from this ground-breaking gender performance audit were presented to and reviewed by the Parliamentary Committee for Equal Opportunities, elevating gender-responsive budgeting and planning to the highest levels of governance. As a direct result of this audit and parliamentary review, the Government committed to a series of transformative actions to improve the socio-economic status of rural women: Enhanced agricultural policies to provide targeted financial support for rural women; A national action plan to boost employment opportunities for rural women and formally recognize unpaid care work, with a pathway toward securing pension rights Expanded access to essential public services, including health, education, and economic support; And Amendments to the Health Insurance Law, ensuring maternity leave and sick leave for registered women farmers.