News
11/17/2022 04:44
The Secretariat for European Affairs today organised the second panel discussion on cluster 4 - "Green agenda and sustainable connectivity" within the events "On the European path: new reforms, new opportunities", which was opened with a welcome address by the Deputy Prime Minister in charge of European affairs, Bojan Maricikj.
For Naser Nuredini, Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning and Coordinator of Cluster 4, the management of Cluster 4 - Green Agenda and Sustainable Connectivity by the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning sends "a clear message that the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia has prioritized environmental protection, climate change and green transition. The green transition required by the Green Agenda should ensure economic development while respecting and addressing climate change and meeting energy needs. I believe that it is the European integrations and EU accession negotiations will be a reliable instrument for fulfilling the requirements of the Green Agenda," said Minister Nuredini.
The Minister of Transport and Communications, Bochvarski, emphasized that Corridor 8 is a challenge and something that they are strongly focused on in this period, because the Government has a goal with the regional partners Bulgaria and Albania, and in this context also Italy needs to position this Corridor in the only Corridor of the Western Balkans.
That is why the investments in the railway network alone reach over 1 billion euros. This was also a topic we discussed with our fellow ministers two days ago at the Council of Ministers in Brussels, and we asked the European Commissioner for Transport, Valean, for financial support from EU funds in this phase of negotiations. In the section of the Clusters for the green agenda and sustainable transport, we put into operation the e-Transport tool with which we provide civil control in the international and internal transport of passengers, Bochvarski pointed out.
The director of the Energy Agency, Dario Nikolovski, also spoke on the panel about the importance of investments in the energy sector and reliable energy supply, as priority investments for the growth of the economy and moving towards the green agenda.
In his address, Nikolovski focused on the energy policy for attracting investments for the construction of energy facilities and increasing the use of renewable energy sources, that is, investing in green energy that will contribute to the protection of the environment and mitigation of climate change.
Director Nikolovski also mentioned that the Energy Agency implements, monitors and analyses the effects of the implemented measures and activities defined in the energy policy of the Government, for increasing energy efficiency and utilization of renewable energy sources.
"Our goals are to improve energy efficiency by 32.5% by 2030, increase the percentage share of renewable energy sources in gross final energy consumption by 32% by 2030, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from 40% by 2030," explained Nikolovski.
The lecturer of the Copenhagen Business School, Mrs. Olympia H. Zaevska said that with Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine, it became clear how important and necessary the green transition is.
- Investments in the greening of the public and private sectors not only bring better quality of life, but also optimize the use of natural resources, build resilience of economies, and perhaps most importantly – bring financial return, added Zaevska.
The chief negotiator with the EU, Maricikj, said that the implementation of the European reform agenda is not only an obligation to the EU and the negotiations for membership in the Union, but that it is a duty and an obligation to the citizens.
For him, all clusters and chapters are important and have their own special weight, but he pointed out that these two are particularly important topics this year due to all the disturbances in the world energy market, as well as the food crisis, caused by the war in Ukraine.
- Almost every day in the focus, both here and in Europe, are the green transition and renewable energy sources, as well as the improvement of the environment, complex issues that are of vital importance to citizens. The goal is to provide prerequisites for better health, a better quality of life for citizens and a competitive economy through the introduction and implementation of high EU standards, Maricikj said.
We know that the obligation we undertake is difficult, but we also know what our goal is: development, prosperity, European economy, European markets, European standard of living for citizens, until the end of 2030. An ambitious but achievable goal, which requires commitment and engagement from all social stakeholders of this national project.
In continuation of her address, Zaevska said that we must not miss well-structured instruments that bring us energy efficiency, waste treatment, clean energy and building the resilience of our infrastructure, as well as economic development, and that it is time for such projects to receive top priority, and thereby seriously investing in the capacity of the institutions to design, implement and use funds for them.
Today's panel discussion is organized with the support of the Kingdom of Sweden through the project "Nordic Support for Progress of North Macedonia" which is implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services UNOPS.