During today’s meeting, led by Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, the Government approved the Draft Law on the Credit Guarantee Fund of Montenegro.

“The approval of this law establishes the legal framework necessary for the creation and operation of the Credit Guarantee Fund of Montenegro, an independent and autonomous entity aimed at enhancing financing access, particularly for entrepreneurs, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, female entrepreneurs, as well as individuals engaged in economic activities that are registered with the appropriate administrative authority for specific activities, like agricultural producers listed in the agricultural holdings register managed by the ministry in charge of agriculture, who face the greatest challenges in securing financing from banks,” the statement declares.

The Government has allocated initial capital for the Credit Guarantee Fund amounting to €10.6 million.

The primary objective, as indicated, is to stimulate and expedite the economic growth of the country through the operations of the Fund, along with enhancing local economic activity by offering financial support to business entities that currently face limited or challenging access to credit.

“Additionally, this mechanism will activate a segment of the market that has valuable projects and programs but struggles to obtain external financing due to insufficient collateral for traditional funding, lack of credit history, or other unrelated factors,” stated the Government.

The importance of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in the establishment of the Credit Guarantee Fund was also emphasized, highlighting its provision of technical assistance to the Government.

“Furthermore, the EBRD’s support will facilitate a quicker launch of the guarantee fund in Montenegro while ensuring its efficacy and efficiency, backed by robust governance and oversight. This framework will create a long-term platform for collaboration with other international financial institutions, including the EBRD, to potentially secure additional resources for economic recovery and development. These goals align with the EBRD’s strategy and ongoing involvement in Montenegro, focusing on enhancing economic competitiveness and resilience. The establishment of the Fund as an independent and non-profit entity improves its capacity to attract extra capital through grants in partnership with international financial institutions and stakeholders,” the statement notes.

The meeting also ratified draft laws concerning the agreement between the governments of Montenegro and the United Arab Emirates on economic cooperation, as well as collaborations in tourism and real estate development, which were signed on March 28 in Abu Dhabi.

The Government greenlit a Plan for the Preparation of the 2025 Summer Tourist Season.

“This plan outlines initiatives that institutions and municipalities, directly and indirectly involved in the season’s preparation, will implement leading up to and during the summer tourist season, alongside ongoing activities aimed at fostering the conditions necessary for better season preparation and tourism development. The initiatives, as stated in the documentation, focus on enhancing transport and utility infrastructure, expanding the tourist accommodation sector with new hotels, improving service quality within the tourism sector and related fields, and diversifying tourism products,” the statement asserts.

Special emphasis was placed on promoting Montenegro in “key source markets anticipated to generate tourist demand.”

“To mitigate seasonality and position Montenegro as a year-round tourist destination, a series of events and festivals are planned, particularly during the pre- and post-season. Initiatives are also aimed at reducing the informal economy, encouraging the employment of domestic workers and youth, enhancing air connectivity to Montenegro with new airline routes, and increasing the frequency of low-cost flights from European cities to Montenegro,” the Government stated.

The Proposal for the conclusion of the Annex to the Agreement on the Long-Term Lease of State-Owned Land No. Uzz No. 105/2023 from October 4, 2023, was accepted, along with the text of the Annex to the Agreement.

The Government ratified the information regarding the implementation of the Concession Agreement for the extraction of Red Bauxite Mineral Raw Materials from the “Zagrad,” “Đurakov do,” “Štitovo II,” and “Biočki stan” deposits, Municipality of Nikšić No. 01-706/24 dated September 30, 2015, and accepted the text of Annex 6 to the Agreement.

“The Concessionaire, the company ‘ONICO SA’ from Warsaw, Poland, as the assignor, and the Consortium consisting of ‘Uniprom’ doo Nikšić and ‘Uniprom-Metali’ doo Nikšić as the receiver, along with the Government of Montenegro – Ministry of Economy as the grantor, have executed the agreement on transferring the concession for extracting red bauxite mineral raw materials from the Zagrad, Đurakov do, Štitovo II, and Biočki stan deposits, Municipality of Nikšić, within the existing exploitation area. Given that the extraction reserves of red bauxite ore at Zagrad are depleted, ‘Uniprom-Metali’ has requested a concession for extracting technical and construction stones at the Zagrad deposit under the existing concession framework,” the Government revealed.

Granting a concession for the extraction of technical and construction stone at this deposit, they explained, would retain the current workforce, enhance the valorization of related mineral resources, and ensure compliance with established concession fees and taxes.

“The Initiative Evaluation Commission has compiled a report recommending that this initiative be approved and forwarded to the Concessions Commission of Montenegro, which has endorsed the request to advance the approval process for the concession to extract technical and construction stone at the Zagrad deposit in Nikšić, without necessitating a public tender process,” it added.

The session also adopted the Information on the Coordination Body’s efforts to harmonize and monitor inspections.

“In the reporting period, specifically January-February 2025, the inspections overseen by the Coordination Body conducted a total of 11,712 inspections. This included 8,364 regular inspections, 957 inspections initiated on request, and 1,251 control inspections where inspectors evaluated the compliance of monitored entities based on orders to rectify identified irregularities,” the statement reported.

It was noted that there had been an increase in the quantity of inspections in February compared to January, with an overall rise in all inspection types.

“The total amount of fines imposed through misdemeanor orders during the reporting period, specifically January and February 2025, reached €930,129. It’s important to highlight that the number of fines imposed through misdemeanor orders rose significantly in February, with an increase of €128,290 compared to January. During this period, a total of 108 requests for the initiation of misdemeanor proceedings were submitted to the appropriate misdemeanor courts,” it added.

For the Action Plan aimed at enhancing inspection oversight during the 2025 summer tourist season, implementation is scheduled across six municipalities: Ulcinj, Bar, Budva, Kotor, Tivat, and Herceg Novi, organized into four shifts of 15 days, running from June 29 to August 31.

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