The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, situated in the middle
of the Balkan Peninsula, covers an area of 25 713 km2
and has a
population of 2 022 547 (2002), making it one of the relatively small
countries in Europe. In autumn 1991, after 45 years as part of the Socialist
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the country gained independence in a
peaceful secession and established the political system as a parliamentary
democracy. Peaceful and stable relations with the all neighbouring countries
and accession to the European Union (EU) and the collective security system
of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) are considered the foreign
policy priorities. Economic reforms have focused on fully establishing market
economy structures, including deregulation and the introduction of the necessary
privatization trends in the public sector, liberalization of international trade, etc.
Alongside facing a number of unforeseen obstacles owing to regional instability,
such as the NATO campaign in Kosovo and the country’s civil unrest in 2001,
reform implementation has been faced with frequent political changes. Since
independence The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has seen five prime
ministers and 13 different compositions of government. During the same period
10 ministers of health have been appointed, which indicates the stewardship
challenges for continuous and consistent health policy.
Life expectancy at birth for both sexes in The former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia has increased slightly from 72.12 years in 1991 to 73.53 years in
2003. However, this figure is still much lower than in western Europe and was
five years below the EU average of 78.49 years in 2004.