The Mayor of Štip, Ivan Jordanov, presented his report for 2026 and declared it "a year of continued work, concrete results and visible changes for Štip". The press conference was held in front of a banner bearing the VMRO-DPMNE logo and the slogan "Macedonia accelerates". A municipal report, with a party backdrop.

The list is long. Pitu Guli, Džemal Bijedić and Kežovica streets have been reconstructed, and Boris Kidrič Street has been fully renovated after five decades. In Belo Brdo and the Levaci neighbourhood, a complete reconstruction of road infrastructure more than 60 years old is under way. Construction has also begun on a new road between Todor Kolarov and Mirče Acev streets, meant to improve access to the Jane Sandanski secondary school and the new Clinical Hospital.

The two buildings get the loudest billing. A new three-level car park next to the "Promaja" building, with space for 50 vehicles. And a new sports hall, "Džekson", for 1,300 spectators, which the mayor called "a true temple of sport in the city". Three floors for 50 cars is a modest number for the word "car park" - but in a town centre, every parking space counts.

According to Jordanov, Štip is the first municipality in the country to introduce automated software for registering and charging for public parking. The plans also include a ring road, new water reservoirs, construction and reconstruction of bridges over the Bregalnica, and a mega-park of around 70,000 square metres along the river. On the social side: financial support for families of children with disabilities in mainstream schooling, scholarships for pupils and athletes, and free uniforms for pupils up to fifth grade.

What's missing from the published report are the numbers citizens care about most. How much did the hall cost, how much the car park, how far along is the ring road, and when will the mega-park become a park rather than a project that's "starting"? A report without figures tells only half the story. The people of Štip will judge the acceleration on the ground, not on a banner.