Epi Center International, in collaboration with Gamper Smith Associates, participated in the external mid-term Evaluation of the second phase of the "Increasing Market Employability – IME" Project, which was implemented in the period from 2019 to 2023. The project is financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation - SDC, and in North Macedonia conducted by Palladium.

Within the framework of the IME Program, in the past period through creation of project ideas, several public institutions were supported, but especially the private sector and organizations that contribute to economic development, focused on the areas of: agriculture, tourism and ICT. The Evaluation was carried out through the review of project documentation, data collection and analysis, and for the most part through interviews and direct discussions with more than 50 different representatives, including municipalities, companies, organizations, etc.

In reference to this, a comprehensive analysis was made, in which several recommendations were created for the phase 3 of the IME Program to be conducted, focused on supporting SME competitiveness, resilience and sustainable development.