SKOPJE – The disbursement of funds for North Macedonia from the EU IPARD III fund has been suspended amid a bribery case, it was reported by the media outlets in the country. IPARD III is aimed at assisting EU candidate countries in modernising their agriculture and rural economies.
“In the current circumstances, as a standard preventive measure to protect the budget of the European Union, the Commission decided to terminate the payment deadline for the declaration of expenditures for the third quarter of 2025 under the IPARD III programme”, the European Commission told Telma portal.
EC clarified that this preventive measure complements the measures already taken by the National Authorising Officer, “both of which contribute to ensuring the protection of the EU’s financial interests”.
However, the Ministry of Finance of North Macedonia stated that they had not yet received an official notification from the EC and confirmed to Telma that on 29 October they had requested 2.9 million euros from the IPARD III programme.
In early November 2025, it was reported that North Macedonia decided to temporarily suspend the payment of funds from the IPARD programme, following the arrest of the head of the Agency for Financial Support of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ilia Stoilev, in a bribery case.
“Stoilev, who comes from the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party, is suspected of having agreed with a former minister of the country to receive the sum of 50,000 euros. In total, there are 4 people suspected of these abuses of EU funds, who have been sentenced to 30 days in pre-trial detention, while several others are under ‘house arrest’”, Gazeta Express wrote.
