Germany, under the government of Friedrich Merz, has promised to break with parts of the previous government’s policies. Yet billions of euros continue to flow to projects around the world focusing on gender, feminism and LGBT rights. In North Macedonia, German funds have, among other things, helped finance a theatre project that has now become the centre of a political controversy in Germany.
By Ota Tiefenböck
North Macedonia/Germany: German taxpayers’ money continues to be spent on projects focusing on gender, feminism and LGBT rights — including in Southeastern Europe. This emerges from a review conducted by the Swiss daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), based on information provided by the German government. The German newspaper Bild subsequently picked up the story. One of the projects that has attracted particular attention is in North Macedonia.
According to NZZ, the German embassy there supported a theatre performance about a man suffering from AIDS who experiences prophetic visions. Among the characters appearing in the production, according to the description, is an angel or creature with “eight vaginas”. The information comes from the German government’s response to a parliamentary inquiry submitted by the right-wing opposition party AfD. It therefore does not in itself constitute evidence that the project was unlawful or lacked an artistic or development-policy purpose. Rather, the criticism concerns whether projects of this kind should be financed through German development aid.
North Macedonia as an Arena for German Development Policy
The case is interesting from an Eastern European perspective because North Macedonia is not some random developing country far removed from Europe. The country is a candidate for EU membership and has for years sought to move closer to accession. At the same time, North Macedonia is part of the politically and geopolitically complex Western Balkans, where the EU, the United States, Russia, China and Turkey compete for influence.
Germany is among the most important European actors in the region. Berlin supports the EU enlargement process in the Western Balkans while maintaining an extensive network of development, civil society and democratisation projects. This makes the question of what German money is actually being spent on in the region more significant than an ordinary German culture-war controversy.
For North Macedonia, relations with the EU are primarily about reforms, the rule of law, economic development, fighting corruption and the country’s long-running efforts to advance its accession process. But part of European support also concerns social and cultural issues — including gender policy, LGBT rights and civil society. It is precisely this intersection that has now come under political scrutiny in Berlin.
€612 Million for Gender-Related Projects
According to NZZ, around €612 million in German public funds went to projects classified as gender-related in 2025. That amount was around 13 percent lower than the previous year, when, according to the newspaper, it stood at €704 million. As a share of Germany’s total development budget, however, the decline was only marginal — from 5.6 to 5.4 percent.
The figures should be viewed in light of the fact that, before the election, the new German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz had signalled its intention to change course in several areas where the previous government had pursued more progressive policies.
German Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan, from the SPD, has nevertheless defended the continued efforts. She has described development cooperation as a “strategic necessity” rather than a moral luxury. A clear political conflict has therefore emerged between the government’s priorities and opposition criticism over what development aid should be used for.
From North Macedonia to the Rest of the World
North Macedonia, however, is only one example. According to the information reviewed by NZZ, the German government continues in 2026 to finance projects involving feminist development policy, LGBT rights and so-called ecofeminism.
Around €1.1 million, for example, is going to an international LGBT organisation for a project intended to compile information on more than 3,500 laws and regulations concerning sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics.
In Indonesia, according to the same information, Germany is supporting a project worth around €392,000 that works with “ecofeminist approaches” in local politics. Millions have also been allocated to feminist development policies in countries including Armenia, Colombia, Rwanda and Tunisia.
A programme aimed at strengthening local and regional civil society actors with the goal of achieving a “feminist transformation” in Africa is, according to the cited information, due to receive a further approximately €20 million through 2028.
Where Is the Boundary of Development Aid?
The North Macedonian theatre performance therefore raises a broader question than simply whether one approves of its content. Where is the boundary between development aid, cultural support and ideological influence?
The German government would argue that gender equality, LGBT rights, civil society and social reforms are legitimate components of international development policy. Critics — including the AfD and Bild — argue, by contrast, that public funds should be concentrated to a greater extent on traditional development-policy goals such as poverty reduction, infrastructure, healthcare, education and economic development.
For countries such as North Macedonia, the debate takes on an additional dimension. When EU countries finance projects in candidate countries, the support is not only about money. It also helps shape the institutions, organisations and values that the EU wants to see take root in the region. It is therefore worth examining more closely which priorities accompany European funding — and how they are perceived locally.
The North Macedonian theatre performance may be a curious example. But at the same time, it illustrates a much broader development: the influence of the EU and its member states in the Western Balkans is exercised not only through Brussels’ negotiating chapters and major infrastructure projects. It is also exercised through the cultural organisations, NGOs and civil society projects that European taxpayers help finance.
And that is precisely why the question of €612 million for gender-related projects is not merely a German domestic political debate. It is also a story about which values Germany and the EU want to export to Europe’s eastern neighbourhood.
This article was originally published in Danish by MrEast.dk. Balkanview.com is publishing the English-language version with the permission of MrEast.dk. The article has been translated into English while preserving the author’s original style and arguments.