English
Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski warned about the worsening demographic situation as the five year action plan prepared by the Government and the UN was presented.
We face two issues – one is the natural emigration process, which we have been prone to as a country and as a people, and the second is the reduced fertility rate. The Government is aware of this issue and is approaching it from several positions. We generated the highest economic growth rate in the Balkans, which means new jobs, higher wages and greater opportunities for the young. We invest in families – with six in vitro attempts covered by the public fund, in an expedited procedure. We provide free textbooks for schoolkids, because education is the foundation of demographic growth, the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister outlined the dire statistics, showing that the number of newborns per year dropped from 50,000 in 1950 to just 16,000 now.
I want to send a message to all Macedonian citizens: founding a family with multiple children is the highest patriotic act of a people for its homeland. Regardless of the ethnic or religious background, the large family means future. If we want to have a future and a rich country that will develop, the family is the answer to all challenges, Mickoski said.
