North Macedonia
North Macedonia is located on the Balkan Peninsula and borders Albania to the north-east, Bulgaria to the north, Serbia and Kosovo to the north and Greece to the south-east. It has a population of 1.8 million inhabitants, divided mainly into two ethnic groups, Macedonians (about 66% of the population) and Albanians (about 25%). The capital is Skopje. The official languages are Macedonian and Albanian. There are also small Romani, Turkish and Serbo-Bulgarian minorities.
The name of the country has long been the issue of a dispute with Greece, which ended in 2018 thanks to the Prespa Agreement, whereby the name North Macedonia was officially adopted. North Macedonia joined NATO in 2020 and is among the candidate countries for EU membership.
The landlocked territory of North Macedonia had formerly been the southernmost part of Yugoslavia, from which it separated peacefully in the 1990s without any territorial changes.
The most widespread religion in the country is Orthodox Christianity, followed by a minority of Muslims, about one third of the population.
Tensions and winds of crisis in the Balkans. The article by Antonio Stango, published on the 25th of May 2024 in Il Giornale
| Head of state | Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova |
| Head of Government | Talat Xhaferi |
| Institutional Form | Parliamentary republic |
| Capital | Skopje |
| Legislative Power | Unicameral Assembly - Sobraine (120/140 seats; currently 120 seats) |
| Judicial Power | Constitutional Court (composed of 9 judges); Supreme Court (composed of 22 judges) |
| Ambassador to Italy | Vesel Memedi |
| Total Area kmq | 25,713 km2 |
| Land | 25,433 km2 |
| Weather | Hot and dry summers and autumns; relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall |
| Natural resources | Iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, manganese, nickel, tungsten, gold, silver, asbestos, gypsum, timber, arable land |
| Economic summary | North Macedonia has experienced economic growth in recent years, driven by private consumption (although investment has declined due to the Covid-19 pandemic); the country has gained economic power at the regional level following the resolution on the Greek name | |
| GDP | $13.56 billion (Dec. 2022) | |
| Pro-capite GDP (Purchasing power parity) | $17,129 (Dec. 2022) | |
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| Export partner | Germany (25%), Italy, Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia (2023) | |
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| Import partner | Germany, UK, Bulgaria, Italy, Greece and Russia (2023) | |
| Trade With Italy | €748 million (2022) |
| Population | 1.84 million (Dec. 2022) |
| Population Growth | +0.11 % (2023 est.) |
| Ethnicities | Macedonians 58.4 %, Albanians 24.3 %, Turks 3.9 %, Roma 2.5 %, Serbs 1.3 %, other 2.3 %. |
| Languages | Macedonian (official) 61.4%, Albanian (official) 24.3%, Turkish 3.4%, Romanian 1.7%, other 2%, |
| Religions | Macedonian Orthodox 46.1%, Muslims 32.2%, other Christians 13.8%, other and non-believers 0.5%, unspecified 0.2% |
| Urbanization | 59.5% (2023) |
| Literacy | 98.4% |
North Macedonia is located on the Balkan Peninsula and borders Albania to the north-east, Bulgaria to the north, Serbia and Kosovo to the north and Greece to the south-east. It has a population of 1.8 million inhabitants, divided mainly into two ethnic groups, Macedonians (about 66% of the population) and Albanians (about 25%). The capital is Skopje. The official languages are Macedonian and Albanian. There are also small Romani, Turkish and Serbo-Bulgarian minorities.
The name of the country has long been the issue of a dispute with Greece, which ended in 2018 thanks to the Prespa Agreement, whereby the name North Macedonia was officially adopted. North Macedonia joined NATO in 2020 and is among the candidate countries for EU membership.
The landlocked territory of North Macedonia had formerly been the southernmost part of Yugoslavia, from which it separated peacefully in the 1990s without any territorial changes.
The most widespread religion in the country is Orthodox Christianity, followed by a minority of Muslims, about one third of the population.
