Macedonia will spend €250 million to improve the capital's image

Macedonia will spend €250 million to improve the capital's image

Macedonian authorities decided to change the image of the capital Skopje to increase the number of tourists. This project was named Skopke 2014 and to date nearly a quarter of a billion Euros have been spent on it.

This money were primarily spent on restoration of the unique historical monuments, among which is the 214-meter long pedestrian Stone bridge over the river Vardar created in 1451. There is also the medieval fortress Skopsko Kale, which has been occupying the left bank of the river for almost thousand years, the Church of St. Clement of the XIII century (it managed to preserve the ancient Byzantine frescoes), the Church of the Holy Savior of the XVIII century and Turkish baths of the Daoud Pasha built in 1466.

About €53 million were allocated for the construction of the new Macedonian Philharmonic, the National Theatre and the Macedonian struggle Museum. Also in the downtown were renovated or rebuilt several large monuments, fountains, recreation areas and two pedestrian bridges over the river Vardar. As a result of these changes Skopje received the elements of neo-classical and Baroque styles.

A large amount of money was also spent on construction new tourist and information centers, including the new building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Located in the heart of the Balkan Peninsula near Tirana and Sofia (the capitals of the neighboring Albania and Bulgaria), Skopje was greatly damaged by the earthquake in 1963. The center of the city was totally rebuilt by the famous Japanese architect Kenzo Tange (he supervised Hiroshima reconstruction after the bombing in 1945), which influenced the style of the entire city. However, many historic buildings and monuments were in poor condition, which affected the tourism business. The country's authorities hope that this situation will be changed with the help of Skopke 2014.

Ilya Kozlovskiy

Date: 17/12/2011