25 April 2019 - Councilors in Bar have adopted the agreement on mutual rights and obligations of the municipality and Sonuba Montenegro company regarding the Maljevik project.

Using this agreement, Sonuba Montenegro is obliged to invest from 30 million to 60 million EUR since the commencement of works. Dušan Railević, president of the municipality, has reminded of the tumultuous history of this project.

“Unfortunately, in the last eight months, the local administration has been dealing with the issue older than ten years. Maljevik has had a tumultuous history and changed the owner three times. In each case, planning documentation has envisaged the construction of hotel structures with an area of 249.000 square meters. We missed a very good opportunity in 2011 and 2012. The degree of construction could have been reduced following the principle of exclusivity. I have said this was the project of the century. And it really is,” said Raičević.

The project itself is proof of the investors’ huge interest.

“To pay 11,5 million EUR for a project that is about to start – it is a big deal,” said the head of the municipality of Bar.

According to him, Maljevik was the best project that the municipality has concluded in the last 50-60 years.

“If we managed to sell the land for 32 million EUR, it is because we were not aware of the problem that it might arise. Investors even less so,” said Raičević.

How did residents of Sutomore benefit from the sale of Maljevik? Raičević said that 24 residents had a profit of 6,4 million EUR based on restitution.

Asked if there are any guarantees for the work, Raičević said that the enforceable and final judgment was the best guarantee.

“Was it necessary to request a bank guarantee on the occasion of the conclusion of the agreement? Probably. But if you had an investor that paid 32 million EUR immediately, what guarantee did we need? What other guarantee? The investor has been settling liabilities on a regular basis, and between 2010 and 2018, the investor paid 550.000 EUR based on the real estate tax,” concluded Raičević.

Source: Cafe del Montenegro

During a recent visit to Bar, where he was present for the handover of the new rescue ship to the Maritime Safety Directorate, Minister of Traffic and Maritime Affairs Osman Nurkovic briefly spoke about the plans of the Government to unite the Montenegrin national cargo fleet. The Minister's statement on that occasion is in disagreement with the assumptions of the maritime navy officials in Bar.

"We have been conducting the analysis for a year, considering the situation, our goal is not merging these companies, but the ships in one fleet. "The state only owns Montenegro Sailing", and “AD Barska plovidba” is a joint stock company, we wanted to enable "Barska Sailing" to buy a passenger ship because, unfortunately, the famous "Saint" lost his class and was sold for scraps, so that the rest of the people in this company would have the opportunity to work and to sail, while in “Montenegrin Sailing", all four cargo ships will be unified in one in order to be more competitive when delivering bids, with fewer costs for maintenance and procurement of the material. When you're bidding to rent four ships, it's a different story than when you have only two. We would have higher incomes, and thus we would pay off the loans for all four boats much easier," Minister Nurkovic told reporters.

From “AD Barska plovidba”, where the board of directors is in session, there have been no comments so far concerning these ministerial allegations.

Asked by "Vijesti" how far they came with the procedure in the case of a concession act to grant a concession for services in the Port of Bar, Minister Nurkovic replied that this would soon be in front of the government.

"We delivered the information to the government, there were objections, they have been implemented, and after the holidays, this will go again to the government, there is no dilemma," Nurkovic said.

These port services include a pilot service, mooring and ship dismantling, hailing, dragging or plunging vessels, delivery of water to harbor yachts, transportation of port authorities to the boats in Port Bar aquatorium and transport of barge to ships in the harbor.

Text by Radomir Petric, on April 25th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

Olive growers from Bar, the first one in Montenegro, have initiated the procedure to register for designations of origin for "Bar Olive Oil", according to the unanimous decision of the Management Board of the Olive Oil Association of Bar.

The protection of designations of origin is in line with the company's strategy, which means the production of high-quality oil, packaging in a high-quality glass of small volume and sale through the improved tourist offer of Bar".

The Management Board expects that the Assembly of the Company will confirm this decision at its session tomorrow.

"This important decision for olive growers in Bar is related to the registration of designations of origin. To protect the quality and the particularity of olive oil obtained from "Bar Zutce", we are going to protect its origin. In addition to the protection label of geographical origin, guaranteed traditional specialty, we decided on the quality scheme Designation of Origin Protection," said Cazim Alkovi, president of the Society.

The designation of origin is the name of a region, a specific place or even a country used to designate an agricultural or food product that is derived therefrom, the quality of which is exclusively or substantially dependent on natural and human factors of a particular geographical environment and whose production, processing and preparation are carried out in the defined geographic area.

"During the recent visit by olive expert Edi Druzetic from Istria, we spoke with him about the forms and ways of protecting the designation of origin, and he provided us with complete documentation in accordance with the requirements of EU legislation, and he also offered us help and advice when making the most important document "Product specifications" where the product is fully described," added Alkovic.

Text by Radomir Petric, on April 24th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

Hotel Verde, which operates within the Celebic Group, has agreed to cooperate with one of the world's leading tourism companies - the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG).

The cooperation agreement was signed in Podgorica on Monday.

Within the IHG Group, there are several renowned brands such as the InterContinental, Regent, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Six Senses etc.

The ceremony of the agreement signing was attended by numerous guests, including the Minister of Sustainable Development and Tourism, Pavle Radulovic, Podgorica Mayor Ivan Vukovic, Deputy Mayor of Podgorica, Caslav Vesovic, President of Celebić Company Tomislav Celebic, Deputy Vice President for Development for Southern Europe , InterContinental Hotels Group, Hylko Versteeg, Regional Manager of Intercontinental Hotels Group, Zivorad Vasic, media representatives and others.

The significance of the arrival of the world-renowned brand the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) in Montenegro is of great importance for the Verde complex and Celebic group as well as for the tourism promotion of our country, said the company.

Text by Vijesti online, on April 24th, 2019, read more at Vijesti

April 25, 2019 - Flydubai airline from mid-June continues to provide summer passenger transport services to Tivat twice a week, confirmed EX-YU Aviation News.

April 25, 2019 - The delegates of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the opposition parties in Kotor- DPS, SD, HGI, and LP voted yesterday for the dismissal of the president of the municipality, Vladimir Jokić.

24 April 2019 - Open scene for spontaneous jazz music creation, jam session Let’s JAM will be organized within the manifestation Jazz Appreciation Month in Montenegro - JAM 2019 on Saturday, April 27, in Podgorica at Budo Tomović Cultural and Informational Centre at the DODEST Hall at 7 pm.

As explained by the representatives of the Budo Tomović Cultural Centre, this program provides the opportunity for jazz lovers and young musicians to perform with the quartet of Enes Tahirović.

"Applications for participation can be sent to the Facebook Page Jazz Art by April 26. The application must include the first and last name, instrument or the vocal and song-composition you want to perform," the announcement of the CIC Budo Tomović said.

After the Jam session on April 25, Jazz Art Association will also organize UNESCO International Jazz Day on April 30 at the Main Hall of the CIC Budo Tomović. On this occasion, Montenegrin musician Iva Kostić will perform with the Enes Tahirović ensemble.

Jazz Art Association is a non-governmental organization dedicated to supporting and promoting jazz music. Founded in 2009 in Podgorica, the Capital of Montenegro, the Association gathers together music educators and musicians and scholars experienced in promotion, communication, and education in the field. Starting in 2010, the Jazz Art Association has been given the honor of coordinating the annual “Jazz Appreciation Month” (JAM) held in April in Montenegro.

24 April 2019 - 'Good, Better, Homemade' is the new slogan of the project Homemade flavours initiated by the Government of Montenegro in cooperation with the Chamber of Economy and the businessmen from the tourism sector, to improve the placement of domestic products in tourism consumption.

On April 24, National Tourism Organization of Montenegro organized a press conference, during which the representatives of this organization presented the newly created slogan and the new logo of this project, to intensify activities on promotion of placements of domestic products in hotels and restaurants.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Milutin Simović assessed that the projects Buy Local and Homemade Flavours actively promote the partnership and cooperation between the Government, businesspeople and consumers.

"By cooperation, producers ensure the placement of products, while entrepreneurs in tourism and trade can enrich their assortment and offer quality and fresh products with more colour, better aroma and more flavour to the citizens and tourists. This partnership is also a method to preserve our tradition, culture, specificity, autochthonous products and to strengthen our tourism brand, "said Simović.

As he further explained, the diversity, quality and speciality of Montenegrin culinary offer, connected with traditional hospitality, represents an important segment of the tourist offer. "Guests recognise Njeguška pršuta (English: Smoked Ham from Njeguši), Crmničko wine, local cheese from Pljevlja, Kolašin, Kuči and many other products. They recognise olives and olive oil from Bar and Ulcinj, wild orange jam, smoked carp, raštan from Podgorica, pastry from Zeta, homemade pies and fried dough, honey from Cetinje and the list goes on, “ Simović pointed out.

The results of a recent survey show that joint projects in relations to the promotion of the placement of domestic products yield results and that the increased presence and visibility of domestic products lead to improved perception of consumers.

"We have to be persistent, because changing consumer habits is a long-term process, and it is especially important to be persistent in raising confidence in ourselves and domestic values," Simović highlighted. He reminded that the Government, through numerous programs and measures, year after year increasingly supports the producers' efforts towards continuous improvement of the quality and safety of food.

State Secretary in the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism Damir Davidović said that Homemade flavours could become a special segment of Montenegro's tourist offer based on gastronomic offer, not only in the domestic market, but also in all regional and foreign markets to attract as many tourists as possible.

The project Homemade flavours were launched as the second phase of the Program Buy Local, implemented by the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism, the National Tourism Organization of Montenegro, the Investment Development Fund and the Chamber of Economy of Montenegro.

24 April 2019 - A comprehensive reform of the juvenile justice system that has been carried out over the past decade yielded results and nowadays Montenegro is a role model for others in the region, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Zoran Pažin underlined at the presentation of the regional initiative "Equal Access to Justice for Children in the Western Balkans", which took place in Podgorica earlier this week.

The Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the protection of the rights and freedoms of children is the most important obligation of state institutions and the justice system, adding that this regional initiative will provide valuable support in creating conditions for the Montenegrin judiciary to always take care of the best interests of children in all proceedings concerning them.

"Over the past decade, in cooperation with all relevant state institutions, the Ministry of Justice has carried out a comprehensive reform of the juvenile justice system, which resulted in Montenegro becoming a role model for others in our region. We want to express thanks to our partners from UNICEF and the EU Delegation to Montenegro for supporting these efforts," DPM Pažin noted.

He emphasised that the reform of the legislation has humanised and improved the treatment of children taking part in criminal proceedings.

"The rule of compulsory specialisation of professionals dealing with children had been introduced, and the Ministry of Justice, in cooperation with the UNICEF and relevant institutions, developed and accredited specialised training programmes for all professionals dealing with children. Thanks to this, today we have judges, prosecutors, lawyers and police officers trained and accredited for work with children who come into conflict with the law, as well as children victims and witnesses of criminal offenses," said Pažin.

He also recalled that the Family Law was amended in 2016, as its implementation had shown some shortcomings in protecting the best interests of children in court proceedings.

"One of the important novelties in the Family Law is the provision of assistance and support to a child involved in court proceedings in family matters through engaging support persons for the child, who is obliged to build a relationship of trust with a child, acquaint them with their rights and provide them with the information about the proceedings and its possible outcome," pointed out Pažin.

The Deputy Prime Minister stressed that, despite the notable progress achieved in the past decade, the Montenegrin society must not and will not be satisfied with the achieved, adding that it is the responsibility of the society to improve the justice system for children continually.

"In Montenegro, we still need to provide additional training for professionals working with children in the judiciary, as well as special rooms for children, to avoid their additional traumatisation in procedures. Furthermore, through further development of the free legal aid system, we want to provide additional support to the most vulnerable, to ensure equal access to justice for every child. Finally, we want to improve the records of data on children participating in court proceedings to have a more reliable basis for planning, implementing and improving child protection policies in the justice system," concluded Pažin.

He noted that the initiative that has been launched today would act as a new significant incentive to further efforts to provide even stronger guarantees of equal access to justice for all children in Montenegro.

In addition to Deputy Prime Minister Pažin, President of the Supreme Court of Montenegro Vesna Medenica, Supreme State Prosecutor Ivica Stankovic, UNICEF Representative in Montenegro Osama Kogali and Head of  EU Delegation to Montenegro Aivo Orav, also delivered speeches at the presentation of the initiative.

It is a two-year initiative being implemented in Montenegro and Albania, with the technical support of UNICEF and financial support of the Government of the Kingdom of Norway, whose goal is to create conditions for applying procedures in the judiciary adapted to the age of the child, taking into account a child's opinion and their best interests in all proceedings concerning them.

24 April 2019 - "I am convinced that as a society we are creating less than we can and that it entails inadequate competitiveness and inefficient valorization of development resources," Prime Minister Duško Marković said, answering the question of MP Boris Mugoša. 

The Prime Minister emphasised that as long as the theme of strengthening export potential does not become the focus of all segments of society, Montenegro must take care of it every day, building the capacity for all economic and social actors in this process to find their place.

"The issue of reducing the foreign trade deficit and increasing competitiveness is the priority of the Government as a whole, and more responsibility lies with a number of its departments. But this issue must equally be a priority for both business people and employees and associations of employers and trade unions. We are interested in providing new value to the citizens through income, and we can only distribute it if we create it first," Prime Minister Marković stated.

When it comes to dealing with the foreign trade deficit in the field of agriculture and energy, the Prime Minister recalled that he informed MPs a few months ago about the concrete steps the Government has taken on the issue.

"Through contracts concluded for long-term lease of agricultural land, as well as the lease agreement for the purpose of building a solar power plant in Briska Gora, the Government made a step forward and from the role of the creator of the business environment, it transformed into the role of investor, that is, property owner who wants to put it into operation, and get a new value from it," the Prime Minister said, emphasising that every inch of Montenegro has a value and that it has to be valorized in a sustainable and efficient way.

"This is the time when we need to change our approach and set our vision in line with the trends of major markets and global economies," Marković stressed out.

When it comes to state property, the Prime Minister pointed out that the Government would give priority to its valorization, and that competent ministries must be available to entrepreneurs, as lines and budget support programmes are provided. All this makes sense only if the citizens and their families will benefit from it.

The Prime Minister recalled that in 2018, in cooperation with the Chamber of Economy and in partnership with retail chains, a programme for the promotion of products called "Buy domestic products" was launched.

"Every day we work to create the conditions for the cheapest placement of Montenegrin services to foreign markets. Therefore, Montenegro actively participated in negotiations on the liberalization of trade in services through the conclusion of the CEFTA Additional Protocol 6," PM Marković said.

The Prime Minister announced that the Ministry of Economy will implement the "Programme for the Improvement of Economic Competitiveness" in 2019, with two lines of expertise and six lines of financial support worth 1.64 million EUR.

"After a long time, we record significant export results, so in the fourth quarter of 2018, the Montenegrin exports amounted to 106 million EUR, which is an increase of nearly nine percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2017. Analyzing this data, we are pleased with the fact that the import of food and animals decreased by 4% in 2018, which is a consequence of government policies aimed at expanding the production base and increasing the finalization of products in the agricultural sector. Also, the export of chemical products increased significantly, by almost 70 percent - primarily export of medical, pharmaceutical and other chemical products," the Prime Minister said.

"With the adequate involvement of all partners, especially the social and business community, it is indispensable to preserve and further improve the high growth rates of our economy, increase export potential, and thus improve the working conditions and quality of life in Montenegro," PM Marković concluded.