On Wednesday 17 November, in Brussels, in cooperation with the European Policy Centre (EPC) and the European Fund for the Balkans, the results of the 2010 Balkan Monitor survey were presented by Gallup Europe at a Policy Dialogue entitled “The rocky road to normality! Public opinion in the Balkans”.

Policymakers, academics and journalists were hearing from a number of experts about the latest situation in the Western Balkans.

On the podium were the EPC’s Rosa Balfour, Gallup Europe’s Managing Director Robert Manchin, Hedvig Morvai-Horvat, Executive Director, European Fund for the Balkans, Neil MacDonald, the FT’s correspondent in Belgrade, Catherine Wendt, Head of Communications Unit, DG Enlargement, Eduard Kukan MEP and Vetton Surroi, Chairman of the Board, Foreign Policy Club.

The key findings of the 2010 Balkan Monitor survey have been summarised in a “Summary of Findings 2010” document – available for download here

The percentage of the people in Serbia who think it would be good for their country to join the EU has dropped from 50 to 44 percent over the last year, and Euro-enthusiasm has declined in some other West Balkan countries as well, reveals a survey carried out by Gallup Balkan Monitor, which is conducted for the needs of the EU.

According to the survey, Serbia, Croatia, FYRMacedonia and Albania all show a negative trend in that respect.

Sixty percent of Macedonia's citizens support their country's accession to the European Union, i.e. two percent less than in 2009 and 16 percent in comparison to 2006. However, 82 percent would vote in favor of the country's EU membership at a possible referendum, shows the 2010 Balkan Monitor poll, published Wednesday by Gallup and European Fund for the Balkans.L

Granting visa-free travel to Montenegrins, Macedonians and Serbs did not automatically translate into higher levels of EU support in all of those countries. In addition to Macedonia, the support for EU also dropped by five points in Croatia to 28%, Serbia from 50 to 44 percent, Albania from 88 to 81 and Kosovo from 88 to 87.

In Montenegro the proportion of respondents saying that the EU was a good thing increased by six percentage points to 73%, while in Bosnia/Herzegovina for 21 points to 69 percent.

Citizens of FYRMacedonia consider Slovenia the biggest supporter and Greece major opponent to their country's EU membership, which is also the case with citizens of Albania and Kosovo.

Macedonians believe that their country will join EU in 2017.

Trust in politicians and political parties also declined in Macedonia from 42 to 33 percent. Religious organization enjoy highest level of confidence, while the judiciary the lowest one.

With 72% of respondents stating that they could only manage on their household’s income 'with difficulty' or with great difficulty', Macedonia has one of the highest shares of people struggling financially.

A similarly dramatic situation had been observed in previous waves of the Balkan Monitor, and this hardship seems to weigh heavily on the life satisfaction of people in Macedonia.

Asked to rate how satisfied they were with their lives in general, on a scale from 0 to 10, people on average gave their lives a score of 4.2 – the lowest in the Western Balkan region, and down 0.3 points from the score measured in 2006.

EU-enthusiasm seems to be growing among the inhabitants of other West Balkan countries, as well as in Kosovo.

In Montenegro, for example, the support to Euro-integration has increased from 67 to 73 percent, while BiH is even more enthusiastic with the percentage having grown from 48 to as much as 69 percent over the past two years.

The survey as conducted in July on representative sample of 1,000 respondents in Albania, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Kosovo.