Gashi: European integration must bring a better standard of living for citizens

North Macedonia’s Parliament Speaker, Afrim Gashi, said today at the Citizens’ Forum “North Macedonia and the Future of Europe: Citizens at the Heart of EU Enlargement,” held in Skopje, that European integration is not merely a process of harmonizing laws, meeting criteria and opening and closing chapters, as Makfax reports. Above all, he said, it is a process that must bring a radical change of the system in service of a better standard of living for all citizens.

According to Gashi, EU membership should mean better education and healthcare, dignified jobs, functional institutions, equal justice for all, a determined fight against corruption, and conditions in which young people see their future in the country. “Your voice matters. Your expectations matter. Your criticism matters,” he said, stressing that the European path cannot be led only in institutions — citizens must be continuously involved in policy-making.

The forum is organized in cooperation with the European Parliament and brings together citizens, MPs, MEPs and experts. Gashi said direct communication is an opportunity to openly discuss the challenges of the European path. He recalled that the forum follows the meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee at the Parliament, where Macedonian MPs and MEPs adopted joint recommendations on key reform priorities.

“Let us not allow the European agenda to remain merely an institutional agenda. Let us turn it into a citizens’ agenda,” Gashi said, adding that European integration must be an above-party and long-term commitment with broad social support. He also addressed European partners: North Macedonia wants to be part of the EU, but expects European standards to become a reality for every citizen in the country, while the Parliament has a special responsibility through an open parliament, transparent processes and continuous dialogue.