The Roma constitute an ethnic group in the Republic of Macedonia

Republic of Macedonia

Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...

. According to the last census from 2002, there were 53,879 persons counted as Roma, or 2.66% of the population. Another 3,843 persons have been counted as "Egyptians" (0.2%). Altogether, 2.85% Roma and Egyptians have been registered in Macedonia.

Another sources claim to be between 80,000 and 260,000 Roma in Macedonia or approximately 4 to 12% of the total population.

Municipality Šuto Orizari

Šuto Orizari municipality

Šuto Orizari , or simply Šutka , is one of the ten municipalities that make up the City of Skopje, the capital of the Republic of Macedonia.-Geography:...

 is the only municipality in the world with a Roma majority and the only municipality where Roma is official language. Due to the demographics, both Romani

Romani language

Romani or Romany, Gypsy or Gipsy is any of several languages of the Romani people. They are Indic, sometimes classified in the "Central" or "Northwestern" zone, and sometimes treated as a branch of their own....

 and Macedonian

Macedonian language

Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...

 are official in Šuto Orizari, the municipality being officially bilingual. The mayor of the municipality, Erduan Iseini, is an ethnic Rom.

In 2009, the Government of the Republic of Macedonia took measures to enlarge inclusion of Roma in the education process.

The Republic of Macedonia is the region's

Balkans

The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...

leader in respecing the rights of the Roma people. It is the first country in the region with a minister of Roma ethnicity and also has a lot of Roma's in high government positions. However, there has still a lot to be done in the spheres of education and integration of the Roma.