Recent sets of active employment measures have seen 306 jobs in the municipalities of Debar and Centar Zhupa. Overall, unemployment levels have dropped by 40 percent from the peak, and the number of citizens on welfare have dropped by 30 percent.
The Employing Macedonia program, began offering sizable tax cuts to companies that hire people from vulnerable categories, elderly and young inexeperienced workers, have helped the two small, mountainous municipalities, says Afet Avmedoski, from the Debar employment office.
"The results are pretty solid. We are small places, underdeveloped, and the numbers of newly created jobs make the programs more than worth their while", said Avmedovski.
MIA correspondent spoke with Pajazit Pajaziti, a 56 year old man from Debar, who was hired by a retail store. "I was jobless for 10 years, and didn't have enough years to ever claim retirement benefits. It was river deep, mountain high for me. But now, I have a job, I'm overjoyed", Pajaziti said.
The measures allow companies to avoid paying the hefty retirement and healthcare fund taxes on the salaries of workers they employ for up to five years, provided they keep them on the job for at least one year longer. The target categories are the young and the elderly, as well as single parents, veterans and other vulnerable categories of people.
"We were also helped by the measures to provide grants for small businesses. In the past five years, 250 jobs were opened directly and 70 indirectly through companies that deal with retail, dentistry, hair dressing salons...", Avmedoski added. The once prosperous trading city of Debar has suffered badly due to the closure of the border with nearby Albania during Communism.