The cooperation in the social sphere between Macedonia and Slovakia is excellent, assessed Minister of Labour and Social Policy Spiro Ristovski and Jozef Mihál, Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour, Social Affairs and Family after Wednesday’s meeting.

Ristovski said that they agreed on strengthening the cooperation between two ministries especially in experts’ assistance in the sphere of labour legislation and active policies.

- We have exchanged opinions about development of social dialogue, communication with trade unions and employers' organisations, reforms in system of pension and disability insurance i.e. the process of granting disability pensions, Ristovski said.

He said that they agreed Macedonian experts to visit Slovakia and to start talks on possibility of signing agreement for social insurance between the two countries. He underlined that 104 Macedonian citizens as well as season workers are registered to live and work in Slovakia.

Mihál informed that they reviewed ideas and suggestions for unemployment reduction. He pointed out that unemployment rate is 14% in Slovakia, which is considerably high.

- The admission in the EU helped us a lot to reduce the unemployment and I hope that the same will happen to Macedonia, because the use of EU funds enables reduction in unemployment, Mihál said adding that Slovakia unreservedly supports Macedonia's integration into the European Union.