Macedonia has received 65.7 million euros from the European Commission through the Western Balkans Growth Plan and the Reform and Growth Instrument - the largest single payment among countries in the region this cycle. For comparison, Albania got 49 million and Montenegro 44.2 million.

According to the office of the Minister for European Affairs, Bekim Sali, the country submitted 21 reform steps in the third reporting cycle, of which 16 received positive marks and three were completed ahead of the deadline. A total of 44 reform steps were monitored, with grace periods extended to June and December 2026 for the rest.

The reforms Brussels rated positively include: a new methodology for financing primary and secondary education, equipping 160 primary schools with internet and IT devices, progress in digital services and electronic identification, public finance management reforms, and greater transparency with reduced bureaucracy. A solid list - if delivered the way it's written on paper.

Of the total, 30.6 million euros will go straight into the state budget, while the rest goes to development projects and strategic investments through the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF). Which means that even when funds "arrive in the budget", part of them has a specific purpose - the prime minister can't simply spend them wherever he likes.

Cumulatively, Macedonia has received 142.1 million euros from this instrument since it was set up in 2023. That's a significant number for a country with a GDP of around 14 billion euros - but small in the context of the country's infrastructure needs and social transformations.

One detail that has barely been aired - Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina were left out of this distribution due to insufficient reform progress. That's a meaningful signal. Brussels is not pretending - "reforms for money" is real, not a slogan. The open question is whether this Macedonian government can sustain the reform tempo through the coming cycles, or whether 65.7 million euros will be the first and last entry on the account.