From invisibility to equality: Advancing Roma inclusion through legal identity in North Macedonia

On 8 April 2026, partners gathered at the Assembly of the Republic of North Macedonia to mark International Roma Day and focus on a simple but essential idea: inclusion starts with being recognized.

“Today, we stand here, in the house of democracy, united around a value greater than any policy, any party, and any daily interest. The value of human dignity,” said Prime Minster Hristijan Mickoski. “Behind every statistic there is a person. Behind every number, a story. And behind every challenge, a hope waiting to be recognized and supported.”

Under the theme “From Invisibility to Equality,” discussions centred on legal identity, the key that enables access to education, healthcare, employment, and social protection. 

“Legal identity may sound technical. But in reality, it is what makes a person visible to the State. And without that visibility, access to rights remains out of reach,” said Edward Anderson, the Mission’s Head of Public Safety and Community Outreach Department.

This is where practical work is making a difference. With support from the OSCE Mission to Skopje, around 750 people who previously lacked legal identity have been able to register and access their rights, while all known statelessness cases linked to the dissolution of the former Yugoslavia have been resolved. 

In 2025 alone, mobile legal aid initiatives supported by the Mission helped around 300 Roma individuals obtain documents and access social protection, thereby bringing services directly to communities and reducing administrative barriers.

Looking ahead, the focus is shifting to prevention. In 2026, the Mission will support the development of a Protocol on Statelessness to strengthen implementation of legislation and improve co-ordination between institutions. Working together with institutions and communities, these efforts are helping ensure that no one remains invisible, and that inclusion becomes a reality.