Forum - Centre for Strategic Research and Documentation, Skopje: Federalization or unitary state: the permanent dilemma of multiethnic societies. The case of the Republic of Macedonia (February 2009 - January 2011)

The project will examine the dilemma multiethnic societies face between the concept of a unitary state - entailing the possibility of transfer or devolution of political and/or socio-economic powers to lower levels of government - and the prospect of constitutionally provided sovereignty power-sharing arrangements with federal tendencies. This is especially relevant to societies deeply divided along ethnic and religious lines. The Republic of Macedonia is a rare case of a country where a constitutionally adopted agreement serves as guarantee of the unitary state, while also clearly devising policies and practices that go in the direction of radical devolution of central power to local communities. The key topics examined will be multi-ethnicity in deeply divided societies, the consociational aspect of power sharing and balancing of inter-ethnic tensions, as well as the strengthening or aggravating factors in the potential development of federalist tendencies. The purpose of the project is to develop a comprehensive cross-analysis of both the reinforcing and aggravating factors keeping divided societies together and provide specific outcomes taking into consideration these factors. The Republic of Macedonia serves as the case study, while comparative research will establish certain common patterns with other typically divided societies in other places. This research project aims to serve as a useful reference both to the general public, policy makers and academic circles in the country and in the region for the concept of viable future policies.
Contact: Mr Gordan Georgiev (georgievgordan@forum-csrd.org.mk), Ms Kalinka Sentic-Gaber (sentic.gaber@forum-csrd.org.mk)

Faculty of Law/Department of Political Science, SS.Cyril and Methodius University, Skopje: The role of the European Union in democratic consolidation and ethnic conflict management in the Republic of Macedonia (May 2009 - April 2011)

This research project aims to produce a comprehensive analysis, using both qualitative and quantitative methods, which will explain the relation between the influence of the European Union, the processes of democratic consolidation of Macedonia and ethnic conflict management in its divided society. Emphasis will be placed on the role of domestic, regional and international actors, their impact, as well societal change inflicted in these fields. Using desk analysis, a public oppinnion survey and qualitative research, the authors will answer the main research question, namely to what extent the EU integration process and its conditionality influenced Macedonia's democratic consolidation and the management of the country's ethnic conflicts since 2001 and the emergence of the Ohrid Framework Agreeement. EU conditionality being the main variable, the fields of ethnic conflict and democratic consolidation shall be inspected. The desk analysis will be conducted using qualitative research methods. It will include screening of all relevant materials and data, collection and analysis of previous research in the respective fields of interest, legal framework analysis, literary review as well as relevant governmental and non-governmental policy documents, strategies and analysis. The survey will be organized around a stratified random sample. The qualitative research method will consist of in-depth interviews with relevant political figures, international actors and other parties involved in the scrutinised processes.
Contact: Mr Nenad Markovic (nenad.markovic@gmail.com)

Institute of Gender Studies, SS.Cyril and Methodius University, Skopje: Gender practice of the Universities in the Republic of Macedonia: inclusion/exclusion of women in the decision making structures and processes (May 2009 - April 2011)

The project aims at making a critical assessment of the gender practices from the aspect of the inclusion/exclusion of women in the decision making struktures and processes of the universities in the Republic of Macedonia. The research topic is important because the aspect of gender has not been a priority in the theoretical and empirical researches in the higher education in our country. Adressing the question of gender equality in the changed social context the aim of the project is to find out how the universites react to the new social reality from the perspective of gender mainstreaming. The key task of the project is to explore not only whether the universities comply with the legal provisions for advancement of gender equality but to identify the inclusion/exclusion practices and their wider socio-cultural dereminants, the key beleifs and perceptions that facilitate/impede women's advancement in the decision-making structures within the ascademia. The expectations are that the final project results will provide relevant analysis of the gender mainstreaming in the universities and to offer a set of proposing ways through which the academic institutions in the country would promote institutional changes and introduce active policies and practices that will reinforce women's participation and gender equality.
Contact: Ms Slobodanka Markovska (coka@sonet.com.mk; slobodanka@fzf.ukim.edu.mk)

Euro-Balkan Institute for Social and Humanities Research, Skopje: The nation-state and the institutions of academic knowledge: production and legitimation of dominant discourses of/on knowledge about society (May 2009 - April 2011)

This research project will focus on how institutions of education and scientific research in the field of social sciences have produced not only professionals involved in governmental politics and institutions, but also ideas, ideologies and dominant models of public policy creation in all areas. We will focus on exploring the role of academic knowledge production, both in terms of research and higher education, in the creation of mainstream discourses on the theme of the Macedonian nation, on the issue of transition (from the communist political system to democracy and free market economy) and on the preferred models of social change. We will be interested in the role of academia in shaping Macedonian society, and, vice versa, in exploring the role played by the political power structures in modelling a higher education system and forming academic research in the area of social sciences. One of the main challenges in this process will be to arrive to innovative scientific solutions to the problems arising from the paradoxes created by the application of models of westerns democracies in the context of post-communist, multicultural and economically weak societies.
Contact: Ms Katerina Kolozva (katerinakolozova@gmail.com), Ms Ana Mukoska (amukoska@yahoo.com)

Citizens Association REACTOR "Research in action", Skopje: Generation "Getting Nowhere": the transitions of the unemployed youth in transitional Macedonia (March 2010 - February 2011)

The transition from the educational system to the work force is one of the most crucial periods in the life of a young person. An unsuccessful transition and prolonged unemployment can have "scarring" effects and lead to social exclusion. The last decades of drastic economic and political changes and insecurities only place more pressure on youth. Overall unemployment rates have risen in almost all developed countries, but young people were hit particularly hard. However, not all young people are affected equally. There is ample evidence that employment is bound by social class, gender and ethnicity. Various other individual, structural and cultural predictors of youth unemployment have been identified, of which the level of acquired education emerges as one of the most powerful. Given that Macedonian youth tops the European unemployment table and that the majority of them have been unemployed for more than four years, we intend examining whether the transitions of the 57.7% unemployed young Macedonians follow international trends or if the unique politico-economic circumstances lead to different paths. We place emphasis on education and try to identify whether and what type of acquired education predicts (un)employment. We will control for most of the suggested covariates, such as gender, place of residence, social-class, and ethnicity and will try and get a clear picture of the potential role that educational institutions have in preventing unemployment. We expect that education generally impacts on employment status, but some schools will do so more than others.
Project leader and contact: Ms Jana Korunovska (info@reactor.org.mk)

Analytica, Skopje: Between the internal and external 'other': de-constructing Macedonian national identity (February 2010 - June 2011)

The aim of this project is to examine the dynamics of national identity (re)construction in Macedonia. As the name-dispute with neighbouring Greece intensified, discussions over the name, language and national identity (re)surfaced and all but dominate the public arena. This development requires input from the social sciences and invites researchers to contribute to a debate with wide policy and societal ramifications. Despite its popularity, national identity as a concept has not been approached from a social science perspective so far. Rather, scholars and politicians used it as a means to mobilise masses and rally support for political projects of different nature, leading to populist and nationalist politics. Macedonia's foreign policy is structured by a specific view of national identity, which has serious consequences for the country's political and economic development. The current dominant view of Macedonian national identity also affects domestic policy towards minorities, thus problematising the country's security and democracy. Therefore, looking into how the boundaries and identity markers of Macedonian national identity were forged vis-à-vis the internal (minorities) and external (neighbours) 'Other' will allow us a rare insight into the laboratory where knowledge, discourse and political power intertwine. The project will result with a study of the dynamics of construction and re-construction of Macedonian national identity in the last two decades, with an emphasis on the name-dispute with Greece and interethnic relations with Albanian minority.
Project leader and contact: Ms Cvete Konevska (ckoneska@analyticamk.org)

Center for Regional Policy Research and Cooperation Studiorum, Skopje: Equity in health in Macedonia: socio-economic, financial and human security aspects (March 2010 - February 2011)

Our project will investigate the equity in health by looking at the socio-economic and financial aspects of access to prescription medicines in Macedonia. Socio-economic conditions determine the health within which people live. We will closely examine the economic and social disparities as causes of health inequity, by looking at the case of access to prescription medicines, a right guaranteed to all Macedonians under the universal health insurance coverage. In transition economies, where governments have decided to employ privatisation and concession mechanisms to increase the healthcare system efficiency, the potentials for supplier-induced demand are considered higher, due to the enabling environment for profit-making. According to the recent analysis in the health sector, unhealthy and unethical relationships between pharmaceutical companies and prescribing doctors interrupt the equitable access to prescription medicines. In this process, the financial burden is transferred to the end users/patients who are paying out-of-pocket expenses for medications that are guaranteed with health insurance. This research will investigate the effects of policy changes affecting the regulation of prescription medicines and incentives available to healthcare providers and pharmacists on the equitable access to prescription medicines for all citizens of Macedonia. The research will focus on the effects of public spending and out-of-pocket expenditures, as a measure for equity in health in the provision of pharmaceuticals.
Project leader and contact: Ms Neda Milevska-Kostova (nmilevska@studiorum.org.mk)