4 March 2010 | A new survey paints a bleak picture, finding that Macedonians -- more than 50% of whom are unable to pay their utility bills -- are unhappy with the country's standard of living.

The Gallup Balkan Monitor poll, conducted in co-operation with the European Fund for the Balkans and the Forum Centre for Strategic Research and Documentation, found that two-thirds of citizens who are currently unemployed have scant hope of finding a job anytime soon.

The current unemployment rate in Macedonia is above 30%. The number of unemployed who are disillusioned about finding work in the next 12 months is the highest in the region.

The Gallup findings were released during a panel discussion in which participants emphasised that time is running out for EU integration in some Western Balkan nations, with an emphasis on Macedonia. They asked the question, "What remains to be done?"

The survey found that 62% of respondents think that EU membership is a good thing, down from 76% when the same question was asked in 2006. Respondents also believe it will take until 2017 for Macedonia to be admitted into the EU, two years longer than previously thought.

Robert Manchin, managing director of Gallup Europe, noted that a majority of respondents believe ethnic relations have improved over the past five years. He pointed to the Ohrid Framework Agreement -- a 2001 accord between the government and ethnic Albanians -- as a source of optimism.

The poll also asked about the longstanding name dispute between Macedonia and Greece. "While in 2008 roughly two-thirds (68%) of respondents blamed Greece alone for the name dispute, this figure decreased to 53%," Manchin said.

Erwan Fouere, the EU special representative to Macedonia, said it was disappointing that real progress in the areas of corruption and reform has taken a back seat to the name dispute.

"I think that the European agenda should be put back on the priority list," said Fuere. "We all know that compromise means the name modification, and we should accept this reality."

*The text and photograph are courtesy of the Southeast European Times (SET), a web site sponsored by the US Department of Defense in support of UN Resolution 1244, designed to provide an international audience with a portal to a broad range of information about Southeastern Europe. It highlights movement toward greater regional stability and steps governments take toward integration into European institutions. SET also focuses on developments that hinder both terrorist activity and support for terrorism in the region.

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