Post-Lignite Era in Western Macedonia

The purpose of this policy brief is to discuss the current state and the prospects for socio-economic development in Western Macedonia. For the past decade the region has faced important challenges: the economic crisis from 2009, closure of lignite mines and electricity plants and the recent energy crisis. These have significantly impacted the region’s economy as well as its transformation potentials in a carbon neutral content. We contribute to the debate of the efficiency of the alternative proposed interventions and investments plans by performing an impact assessment of the Just Transition funds in terms of employment and gross value added. This allows to single-out which actions have the highest effect on the regional economy; an information that can be used as a guide in future policy planning.