The meeting organized by the Economic Chambers of Montenegro and Kosovo was rated as another confirmation of the high-quality inter-communitarian cooperation.
During the Forum, on which the state of economic and trade relations between Montenegro and Kosovo was analyzed and measured for their improvement, were discussed. In addition to the businessmen, the Ambassador of Montenegro in Pristina Ferhat Dinoša, representatives of the Ministry of Finance, Tax Administration, Customs Administration of Montenegro and Kosovo, and local governments also participated.
"The composition of the delegation and diversity of activities speaks in favor of the fact that the two countries' economists recognize a large number of fields which serve to achieve cooperation between the two countries and to realize their economic interests. With this and similar events we promote partnership, better connectivity, and networking of investors, the need to share ideas, good experiences and good projects in order to become more competitive together," said the Vice-President of Montenegro's Economic Chamber, Ivan Saveljić.
According to him, economic cooperation between the two countries is largely reflected in commodity trade, tourism turnover, and direct investment.
Trade in goods between Montenegro and Kosovo in 2017 amounted to EUR 26.7 million, or 18.1 percent more than in 2016. The value of exported products to Kosovo amounted to EUR 22.6 million, or 17.7 percent more than in the previous year, while the value of imports amounted to EUR 4 million and recorded a growth of 17.6 percent. In 2017, Montenegro's surplus amounted to 18.6 million euros. Kosovo is among the main export foreign trade partners of Montenegro, and in commodity trade with this country, Montenegro is constantly experiencing a surplus. In 2017, wood and wood products amounted to EUR 11.1 million, of which EUR 7.9 million were from cut wood and EUR 3.1 million in firewood. This is followed by the products based on cereals, flour, starch or milk of 5.3 million euros.
The foreign trade deficit is a common problem of our two countries and that is why we must work towards bringing the economy closer to strengthening the regional and European competition," said Saveljic.
In 2017, Montenegro saw 46,948 tourists from Kosovo, which is 21.4 percent higher than the previous years, and realized 255,117 nights. Between January and April 2018, Montenegro was visited by 5,651 tourists from Kosovo, who realized 11,798 overnight stays. He then introduced macroeconomic indicators of Montenegro characterized by the growth of gross domestic product, employment, earnings, services, especially in tourism, construction and all types of traffic and net foreign investments.
According to him, in the light of regional cooperation development, it is expected that the non-tariff barriers observed in the trade in the Region will be eliminated through the application of CEFTA Supplementary Protocol 5 on Trade Facilitation, which entered into force on April 18, 2018.
The additional Protocol 5 within CEFTA is one of the three agreements that broadens the context of CEFTA Agreement and represents an easement of the trade. Expectations are that the application of this protocol will increase the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises in cross-border trade by 60-80%, reduce waiting times in the customs procedure, lead to greater alignment of border services and enable mutual recognition of the World Customs Organization's Safety Standards, certificates between the signatories CEFTA 2006 Agreement, ultimately reducing the export costs.
The President of the Kosovo Chamber of Commerce Safet Grdzali said that the business community is at the forefront in strengthening the cooperation of the two friendly states.
"Our goal is to promote this once conflicted region as an area of peace, remove barriers to business and become a part of the European vision. We are a complementary economy and we need to strengthen cooperation not only among ourselves but also with the third countries," said Grdzali.
He stressed out the importance of the signed Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministries of Transport of the two states, which should contribute to the elimination of recognized barriers in this area. The president of the Chamber of Commerce of Kosovo believes that the business sector should be even more demanding in relation to the infrastructure connecting this country with Montenegro which needs to be improved. Gazmend Abraši, Kosovo Prime Minister's Advisor and Coordinator for the Western Balkans, conveyed positive impressions to the businessmen from the recent meeting of two state presidents of the governments, Dusko Markovic and Ramush Haradinaj, on moves that will contribute to stronger partnerships.
According to him, they discussed the mentioned tunnel between Pec and Rožaje, in a length of 7.9 kilometers, which will connect the two towns in a 15-minute drive. The regional railway project Bijelo Polje - Berane - Peć is also being considered and the normalization of this vision of traffic with Serbia, which would also affect the connection with the Port Bar. He expressed satisfaction with the construction of the Dečane-Plav 28 km long road and the discussion on the cancellation of compulsory insurance for vehicles entering Kosovo which is considered a business barrier.
Abrashi highlighted the importance of Kosovo joining the Ionian gas pipeline, to which, according to him, significant support is being provided by Montenegro. Kosovo will, as he announced, sign Protocol 5 of CEFTA Agreement in July, while in September it will also do the same for Protocol 6, although there are certain problems with Serbia in this regard.
Text by CdM, on July 1st, 2018, read more at CdM
