Klekovski: €195 million loan for projects at hospitals in Tetovo, Shtip and Kičevo

The Ministry of Health, in cooperation with the World Bank and the European Investment Bank, is working to secure a €195 million loan. The funds will be used to complete projects at the clinical hospitals in Shtip and Tetovo, as well as at the General Hospital in Kičevo. Health Minister Sasho Klekovski said today during a parliamentary session for questions from opposition lawmakers that he expects the government to approve the arrangement by the end of the year, paving the way for the implementation of these three long-awaited projects.

Responding to a question from European Front MP Rina Ajdari, who raised concerns about the stalled investments at Tetovo Clinical Hospital, Klekovski said that the long-standing issue of work contracts had also been resolved. According to him, these contracts have been converted into regular employment.

Regarding Ajdari’s question about the level of breast cancer screening in the Polog Region over the past 20 months, the minister referred to data from the State Audit Office and a report on the audit of screening programs for the 2021–2024 period, when the country was governed by a government led by the SDSM. He said that 17,000 mammograms were included in the program in 2024, while only 651 mammograms had been carried out in 2021.

Klekovski also announced that the screening programs had been evaluated and were being reviewed with the aim of improving them. He said he would take part tomorrow in a workshop with representatives of the Hema-Onko patients’ association and professionals from abroad, including the director of national screening programs from Slovenia. The meeting will discuss how these programs can be made more effective.