Component I: Transition Assistance and Institution Building Component (TAIB)

According to Article 64 of the IPA Implementing Regulation (EC) No 718/2007, assistance under IPA Transition Assistance and Institution Building Component is granted in the following areas:

strengthening of democratic institutions and the rule of law;
promotion and protection of the fundamental rights and
freedoms;
public administration reform;
reform in the field of justice and home affairs;
modernisation of the regulatory framework, including support for investment to equip key institutions whose infrastructures or capacity to monitor and enforce legislation need strengthening;
establishment or reinforcement of financial control systems;
strengthening of the market economy;
development of civil society;
establishment of social dialogue as an element of good governance and to promote fair and just working conditions;
promotion of minority integration, reconciliation and confidence-building measures on all levels of society;
environmental policy;
improvement of access to financial facilities for small and medium- scale enterprises and public administrations;
institution building in the field of nuclear safety, radioactive waste management and radiation protection;
support for participation in community programmes.

Assistance is made available to public authorities at central, regional and local level and will be also give support to organisations which have an important role in helping the Republic of Macedonia to prepare for accession and implementation of the аcquis communautaire.

Assistance under IPA Component I – TAIB may be provided through:

administrative cooperation measures (twinning, twinning light and TAIEX);
technical assistance;
investment sin regulatory infrastructure;
grant schemes;
project preparation facilities;
implementation of finance facilities in cooperation with financial instruments;
budgetary support.

For further details see
https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/instruments/funding-by-country/north-macedonia_en

Operating Structure for the IPA Transition Assistance and Institution Building Component in the Republic of Macedonia

The Operating Structure for IPA Component I in the Republic of Macedonia was established as a collection of bodies, responsible for managing and implementing the TAIB National Programmes in accordance with the principle of sound financial management, pursuant to point 6 of Annex A of the Framework Agreement and Article 28 of IPA Implementing Regulation (IPA IR).

According to Article 12 of the Governmental Decree on Determining Mutual Relations between the Bodies and the Structures of Decentralised Management of the First Four Components under the EU Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (OGRM No 132/2008), the list of bodies comprising the Operating Structure for the TAIB Component consists of the following:

Central Financing and Contracting Department (CFCD) within the Ministry of Finance represented by Programme Authorising Officer, acting as Head of the Operating Structure;
The respective departments/units/working groups within the Line Ministries/ Beneficiary Institutions that are beneficiaries of projects under the TAIB Component;
NIPAC Office – the Secretariat for European Affairs;
Internal Audit Units in the relevant Line Ministries/Beneficiary Institutions.

The Central Financing and Contracting Department (CFCD) will act as a Lead Body of the Operating Structure for TAIB and as Contracting Authority, headed by the Programme Authorising Officer (PAO), solely responsible for carrying out tendering procedures, contracting, and execution of payments to contractors/grant beneficiaries, as well as the accounting of projects financed under IPA. CFCD is also responsible for monitoring the contract implementation, and PAO is responsible for the overall functioning of the Operating Structure for TAIB.

The tasks of the Operating Structure related to programming, technical implementation and monitoring of IPA funded projects are delegated to Line Ministries and/or Beneficiary Institutions, represented by Senior Programme Officers (SPOs).

The Secretariat for European Affairs (SEA) as NIPAC Office under TAIB is responsible for programming and programme monitoring and evaluation as per article 75(1) of the IPA Implementing Regulation. It also acts as a Secretariat of the TAIB Monitoring Committee and the IPA Monitoring Committee

See the IPA Operating Structure Chart