§ Sir Alastair GoodladTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the future of the United Kingdom's aid programme to Macedonia. [34856]
618W
§ Clare ShortThe United Kingdom has spent almost £4 million in Macedonia since 1993–94 when assistance was first provided through the Know How Fund. We expect to spend around £600,000 in 1997–98 and will expand the programme significantly in 1998–99.
Following discussions with other donors and local partners we will focus on the priority sectors of Small and Medium Enterprise Development, Good Government (initially focusing on media and police training) and the Financial Sector.
The main project planned for the next two to three financial years will be to develop three regional small and medium enterprise development centres in Western and Southern Macedonia; two of the three are planned for the ethnic majority Albanian towns of Tetevo and Gostivar.