You have been prepared to welcome tourists to your accommodation, rent-a-car or tourist agencies and this year, and you will host all those who want to see the beauty of Montenegro. Hipotekarna Bank has an opportunity for you to find out the most current novelties in the digital business of the tourism industry at a free workshop, in the tourist metropolis Budva.

Dragan Varagic, strategist of business transformation and e-business development, a blogger, a professional lecturer from the field of business application of the Internet, will speak about a very up-to-date and useful topic "Promoting internet sales for the needs of the tourism industry". 

Along with him, Sejad Sehic, Director of Card Business and Advanced Sales Channels, will also be the host, who will present to the participants of the workshop in detail the unique payment service of the Hipotekarna Bank, HB booking.

To summarize, HB Booking Payment Service allows registered publishers of accommodation, rent-a-car, and travel agencies online payment of their services, without creating their website, and to their customers safe and secure payment with their credit cards, without the use of POS terminals with the highest security standards of card houses. The workshop will take place on April 10^th at the hotel “Budva” in Budva, starting at 11 am.

The workshop is free of charge, and the number of places is limited. So, sign up as soon as possible. To learn the novelties from the digital world, you do not have to be our client - it is important that you are interested and to sign up by April 8^th by filling out the form on the website www.hb.co.me. More information can be obtained by sending an inquiry to our address - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

For more information, please follow TMN's dedicated page

Text by Promo, on April 2nd, 2019, read more at Vijesti

The Secretariat for Development Projects by mid-April should submit to the Government proposals for the conclusion of a contract with three selected mediation agents in the project of the selection of persons wishing to obtain a Montenegrin passport based on investments in Montenegro. Public call conditions were completed by three companies, namely Apex Capital Partners, Arton Group and Henley & Partners Government Services.

The competition for the selection of agents for international aptitude announced at the beginning of January was extended until April 1^st. The reason for this is that the applications received did not meet the requirements. The public opening of bids on this basis is planned, according to information from an amended call, for April 8th.

When the Government concludes a contract with the selected agents, the Secretariat will issue licenses, and only by issued licenses, agents can perform their activities within the aforementioned Montenegrin citizenship acquisition program.

"A total of 22 applications have been received for public mediation agent selection. The three applications met the conditions stipulated by the decision and the public call, 18 applications did not meet the conditions, while one application did not arrive within the defined and according to the decision and the public call it was not considered," said the Secretariat.

The Government Decision on criteria, methods, and procedures for the election of persons who may obtain Montenegrin citizenship by a receipt for the realization of a special investment program of exceptional importance for the economic interest of Montenegro is applicable from 1^st January 2019. Based on this decision in the next three years, it is possible to issue a maximum of 2,000 Montenegrin passports. One of the conditions for the application of getting the Montenegrin citizenship is that the foreigner has not been legally convicted in Montenegro or another state and for whom an international aptitude assessor has given a positive opinion, including proof of money initially intended for payment and investment following the Government's decision. If it is subsequently found that the person who acquired the Montenegrin citizenship by admission in accordance with the decision has given false information or deliberately concealed the facts and circumstances, as well as if the agent for assessing international eligibility for that person provided incorrect information in his report, a decision of withdrawal of the citizenship will be issued.

The Government's program model for acquiring a Montenegrin passport is donation and investment. Contribution refers to the amount intended for the development of less developed municipalities. The contribution amounts to 100,000 euros per applicant's request, which is for 2,000 applications a total of 200 million euros. The investment refers to the amount intended to invest in one of the development projects from the Government's list of development projects. The applicant has to pay at least EUR 450,000 to invest in one of the development projects in Podgorica or on the coast or at least EUR 250,000 to invest in one of the development projects in the northern or central region.

The applicant must pay 15,000 euros for himself, 10,000 for a maximum of four family members and 50,000 for each of the following family members.

An open invitation to invest in tourism

On February 26^th, the Ministry of Tourism issued a public call for those wishing to invest in the field of tourism to get the Montenegrin passports. The call is open until the end of 2021.

From the Ministry of Tourism, to "Vijesti" was explained that a committee for evaluation of public call documentation was formed, regarding the fulfillment of the qualifying conditions for project selection on the list of development projects in the field of tourism. "Applications, or documents that fulfill the conditions by a public call, shall be submitted by the Ministry to the Government which, according to the decision, determines the list of development projects in the field of tourism. The committee will meet regularly and consider the received documentation, "the ministry said. The public call lists the criteria for investing in a hotel or a mixed complex.

Among other things, the investor must employ at least 80 employees in the coastal region or the Capital or at least 25 employees in the northern or central region, as well as that the hotels that they built have at least 60 accommodation units in the coastal region or the capital city or at least 35 accommodation units in the north or the central region.

For more information, please follow TMN's dedicated page

Text by Marija Mirjacic, on March 31st, 2019, read more at Vijesti

April 3, 2019 - On the occasion of 4 April, Students' Day, the Civic Education Center CGO-CCE points to the importance of student activism and the involvement of young people in the struggle for democratisation and Europeanization of the Montenegrin society.

"Even today, in Montenegro, sporadic rebellious student voices are part of the cause. And part of the cause should be sought in a formal education system that does not educate young people about active citizenship, nor develops their critical thinking but also the political constellation of relationships that marginalise young people and their subjects. All of that has a negative impact on the youth's desire for any form of activism, and among youth is still a dominant lack of recognition of the importance of their own active participation in the formation of the society in which they live, and participation in civic initiatives is at the bottom of the chart of important things. The research "Montenegrin Youth- Social decor or social capital" implemented by CGO-CCE in 2016, indicated that nearly a quarter of young people considered it important not to be involved in civic initiatives and actions, and the overwhelming majority that it is not essential to be active in politics.

The CGO-CCE notes that today's approaches to change this approach emerge today through the activities of the Student Initiative and welcomes such forms of student organisation aimed at re-examining the quality of existing modalities of student representation in the university bodies to improve it, but also to contribute to a broader social change. In situations where the vast majority of students and students are sleeping in the masses of those who do not want to leave the comfort zone, such exits are particularly important.

The CGO-CCE's findings also warn of the low level of transparency of higher education institutions when it comes to access to information on institution sites, which also reduces the chances of students responding timely to issues that directly affect their position. In this context, CGO-CCE is concerned that there is no shift in the activism of student and student representatives in those bodies that have been established to improve their position, such as the Student Parliament. The work and choice of these student representatives remain insufficiently transparent and questionable, and the limiting factor is that this student body is positioned as an autonomous body with integrity and influence.

The overwhelming problems in higher education, but also on the broader social level, should be the focus of students and students themselves to shape the country in which they want to stay. Not the one they want to leave as soon as possible," says the CGO-CCE announcement signed by the associate Mira Popović.

April 3, 2019 - Nine RC44 teams are set to make their debut on the beautiful waters of Kotor Bay, Montenegro for the first event of the newly christened 44Cup over 10 – 14 April.

While the majority of teams have opted for strategic consistency, retaining the same crew as last year, a few key changes promise to mix things up. Entering the fray for the 2019 season are a fresh crop of tacticians: Tom Slingsby takes over from Dean Barker on defending World Champion Team Nika and Ed Baird joins Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team, replacing long term tactician Vasco Vascotto.

His Australian team, having recently won the debut SailGP event in Sydney, Slingsby explains why competitive fleets such as the 44Cup are important to a professional sailor: “The process of adapting between the classes is really important. There are few sailors who are successful in slower, tactical boats all the way through to fast, technical foiling boats. I learn from the people I race with every day and so, it doesn’t matter if it’s a Olympic champion or a club racer, if someone can do something better than I do, whether it’s a tactical move or boat handling, I want to learn and put it in my arsenal.”

The former Oracle Team USA tactician and London 2012 Laser gold medallist adds: “Owner driver circuits place a real challenge on communication. The full professional programs are usually unbelievably quiet boats because you know what people are thinking, but the semi-pro teams place a huge importance on good communication skills.”

The 44Cup has long prided itself on offering the owners and drivers and tacticians as level a playing field as possible with its strict one design rule. However, the first event of 2019 takes this to a new level, as none of the sailors have previous experience of racing in Tivat, Montenegro – making it the ultimate test of each team’s communication ability and skill. 

"Montenegro looks like a beautiful venue, but sailing knowledge or an understanding of the area and what to expect is zero,” explains Team Aqua’s tactician Cameron Appleton. “The racing area is in a beautiful bay surrounded by massive mountains so we are expecting flat water and lighter shifty winds. This becomes tricky as no one will have a clear advantage.”  

Returning regulars, with only small changes to their crew line-up and looking to monopolise on their consistency, include long term favourites Chris Bake’s Team Aqua, Hugues Lepic’s Aleph Racing, Vladimir Liubomirov and Kirill Frolov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team and Torbjörn Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing.

However in 2018 the teams topping the leaderboard showed surprisingly little consistency. Nico Poon’s Charisma won the 2018 season by a single point over Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika and Igor Lah’s Team CEEREF. Throughout 2018 both Poons and Prosikhin struggled desperately with consistency and only prevailed in the final event of the season. Going into the new season Poons, again like Prosikhin, will be struggling as he too takes on a change in tactician, as American team coach and Olympic 470 silver medallist Morgan Reeser steps into the role left open by Kiwi America’s Cup legend Ray Davies.

“Our main challenge for 2019 is not the other teams but the change of our tactician and one of the key crew member (Sean Clarkson) who’s also left for the America's Cup. Nothing can be predicted!” said Prosikhin.

Perhaps these crew changes will create a chink in the armour that will allow back in one of the strongest teams in the fleet and the kings of consistency, Team CEEREF.

The only crew to glean a fraction more experience over the rest of the fleet in terms of the 2019 44Cup’s first venue is the newest: Tavatuy Sailing Team. Having joined the fleet for a single regatta in 2018, they have committed to the 44Cup for the full season and in preparation have already put in a week of training in Montenegro: “Porto Montenegro is a great place for a regatta. We were lucky with the weather in February and we were able to do a good training session in the strong north-east Bora wind. It is a beautiful marina and I’m sure the other teams will be as impressed as we were,” said Sergejs Filatovs [ is this name right – if he’s not the owner, then who is he?]

Hosted for the first time by Porto Montenegro over 10 – 14 April the 44Cup Porto Montenegro will be the first event of what promises to be a close, hard-fought 44Cup season span five regattas between now and its conclusion in Palma in November.

02 April 2019 - Montenegrin Finance Minister Darko Radunović and analysts from Moody's Credit Agency, Heiko Peters and Hannah J.V. Dimpker, who currently reside in Podgorica for the regular annual visit of the Agency, held a formal meeting on April 2 to discuss economic, fiscal and financial conditions in Montenegro.

Minister Radunović informed the Moody’s analysts about the results in 2018 and emphasized that the beginning of 2019 already looks promising, considering that the figures for January and February show that budget revenues were 18.5% higher than in the same period last year and 6.3% higher when compared to the planned revenues for this period.

Also, the Finance Minister reminded the present parties that Montenegro is currently in its third year of fiscal consolidation and that the measures have already given significant results.

"2019 is an important year for Montenegro because of the work on structural reforms, but also because this year will show a downturn concerning public debt, "the Minister said and added that a healthy investment cycle in energy, tourism, transport, and infrastructure was launched in Montenegro.

Representatives of Moody's Credit Agency have met with representatives of the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Montenegro, the banking sector and international organizations in a two-day visit to Montenegro to collect data based on which they will assess the credit rating of the state.

According to the assessment of the Agency, Montenegrin credit rating would likely be upgraded if there would be full or close to full implementation of the government's consolidations measures showing up in improving government's debt metrics placing the government's debt trajectory on a sustainable downward path in combination with Moody's heightened confidence that the highway-related fiscal risks are contained.

Also, a credit positive would be the completion of a majority of the EU's acquis communautaire, which would support progress towards EU accession. Equally, a reduction in contingent liabilities, stemming from a combination of materially lower government guarantees and lower risks posed by banks and SOEs, would also be credit positive.

02 April 2019 - Low-cost airline company Ryanair, based in Dublin, has launched scheduled flights from Bologna to Podgorica Airport starting April 1, 2019.

In February 2019, low-cost carrier Ryanair started looking into further expanding its operations in Montenegro. The airline's Route Development Manager, Gary Butler, met with the General Manager of Airports of Montenegro, Danilo Orlandić, to discuss growth potential. The budget airline has now introduced its sixth destination to Podgorica this summer season, with flights from Bologna launched on April 1.

As officially announced from Ryanair representatives, the company launched two weekly flights from Bologna to Podgorica, which will be maintained Monday and Friday with Boing 737-800 aircraft, which has a capacity of 189 seats.

Ryanair faces no direct competition on the route, with Alitalia and Montenegro Airlines maintaining services between Rome and Podgorica, while Wizz Air operates flights from Milan Malpensa to the Montenegrin capital.

Bologna will thus become the fifth Italian city which is directly connected with Montenegrin cities via Airports of Montenegro, and the route Bologna – Podgorica represents the sixth line to Montenegro held by Ryanair.

Speaking to EX-YU Aviation News, the airline said it expects to handle 175.000 passengers on its operations to and from the Montenegrin capital. "We look forward to carrying more than 175.000 annual customers through Podgorica airport this year. Ryanair offers six routes in total operating from Podgorica Airport. Customers can fly twice weekly from Podgorica to Stockholm Skavsta, Brussels Charleroi, London Stansted, Berlin Schonefeld, Bologna and Wroclaw".

The carrier launched services to the Montenegrin capital in the summer of 2013 following two years of negotiations with the government. On Thursday it handled its 500.000th passenger in Montenegro since it commenced operations to Podgorica. It has expanded its network from the city each year ever since. The company previously noted its Podgorica flights "continue to perform strongly."

02 April 2019 - Respect for human rights and freedoms was and remains the necessary condition and the driver of democratic, social and economic development of Montenegro, Deputy Prime Minister Zoran Pažin said at a meeting with OSCE Secretary-General Thomas Greminger. 

The Deputy Prime Minister pointed out that during 2019 Montenegro will remain focused primarily on fulfilling obligations arising from the EU accession process. "Our ambition is to open the remaining negotiating chapter on competitiveness as soon as possible, but also to finally get the opportunity to continue the process of the temporary closure of negotiations in certain chapters," he stressed. 

DPM Pažin emphasizes that Montenegro will have to adopt and implement key reform laws in the field of media, electoral and anti-discrimination legislation. In this context, he expressed the full readiness of the ruling majority to reach the best legal solutions through dialogue with opposition representatives in democratic institutions and provide even stronger protection of the rights and freedoms of Montenegrin citizens. 

Secretary-General Greminger said that the OSCE fully supports the efforts to hold a political dialogue on key reform processes in the Parliament of Montenegro. He assessed that Montenegro is a reliable and committed partner of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and expressed organisation's readiness to continue to work with Montenegrin institutions in critical areas such as the rule of law, media reform, cybersecurity and the electoral legislation reform. 

Speaking about the reform of the electoral legislation, the Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the Government strongly advocates the acceptance of all recommendations of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), adding that all recommendations that needed a simple majority in the Parliament were already accepted. Furthermore, he noted that there is full readiness of the parliamentary majority to approve the remaining recommendations that require a qualified majority in the Parliament of Montenegro through the open dialogue with the opposition. 

Deputy Prime Minister Pažin pointed out that free, independent and pluralistic media represent a necessary precondition for the development of every democratic society, and that states have the primary responsibility to ensure respect for and protection of the freedom of speech and freedom of the media. He thanked the OSCE for its expert support during the drafting of media laws, assessing that those are regulations that are of great importance for further democratic development and the overall progress of Montenegrin society. 

In this context, he expressed the expectation that all political actors will recognise their responsibility and give a full contribution that these and other important legal solutions, which directly affect the exercise of the rights and freedoms of Montenegrin citizens, will be discussed in detail and adopted in the Parliament.

02 April 2019 - Montenegro is significantly ahead of other countries that aspire to become EU member states, it was estimated during the visit of Montenegrin delegation to Berlin, and noted that the continuation of high-quality implementation of reforms, with the support of European partners, especially Germany, would lead to further progress in the field rule of law. 

Montenegrin delegation, led by Chief Negotiator Aleksandar Drljević, was consisted of Negotiator for chapters 23 and 24 Marijana Laković, Chief Prosecutor Milivoje Katnić, Assistant Director of the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption Savo Milašinović, and Assistant Director of the Police Directorate for Criminal Police Sector Enis Baković. During their visit to Berlin, they presented the latest results in the fight against corruption and organized crime, which show that Montenegro is ready for the new phase of the negotiation process. 

Delegation members held meetings with Head of the Division for Foreign Policy, Security Policy and Global Issues in the Office of the Federal Chancellor, Head of the Division for Serious and Organized Crime at the Federal Ministry of the Interior Joachim Bertele, Advisor of Chancellor on European Affairs Franz Neueder, Head of the Division on Serious and Organized Crime at the Federal Ministry of the Interior Sven Berger, as well as Special Representative for Southeastern Europe, Turkey and the EFTA countries at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs Christian Helbach. They also spoke with Head of the Division for Human Rights, International Law, and Principles of the EU Almut Wittling-Vogel and Deputy Head of the Division for Europe at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs Thomas Osowski. 

State authorities show determination to direct all available resources to achieve convincing results in areas of importance. We expect all EU members to recognise the latest results of the Special State Prosecutor's Office, the Police Directorate and the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption in the field of combating corruption and organized crime, and that we will soon receive a Report on the fulfillment of interim benchmarks in chapters 23 and 24 and then the final benchmarks, representatives of Montenegrin delegation said. 

It was noted that Montenegro had made significant progress in the fight against organized crime, especially highlighting the results achieved in cooperation with the EU and regional countries, as well as the international cooperation of Montenegrin police with EUROPOL and INTERPOL. 

Both sides assessed that significant progress was made in the area of the rule of law, and that additional efforts should be invested in areas where progress has not been sufficiently achieved, to achieve EU standards and a better quality of life.

01 April 2019 - The winter tourist season 2018/2019 at Montenegrin ski resorts ends this weekend, which Director of the Ski Resorts of Montenegro Miloš Popović assessed as successful, somewhat better than last year's. 

"The winter season began in mid-December, and it ends today. There are six ski resorts in Montenegro: Kolašin, Savin Kuk, Javorovača, Vučje, Štuoc, and Hajla. In the Ski Center Kolašin 1600, which was opened later because of the installation of the cable car, 4.00 ski passes were sold during 45 days of the season, while 13,000 ski passes were sold in Durmitor during 109 days of the season. The season, from the aspect of the amount of snow on the trails, was very successful, one of the best in the last six years, a couple of percent better than the previous one that was the most successful in the last few years," the Director of the Ski Resort of Montenegro emphasised. 

Popović announced additional works during the summer and new contents in the following winter tourist season in Kolašin and other centers. 

"This is just the beginning of the development of this ski center. This is evidenced by the fact that a tender procedure has already been launched for the new six-seater cable car, which will connect the ski centers Kolašin 1600 and Kolašin 1450. Furthermore, we will prepare about 9 km of ski trails alongside. In addition to the existing cable car, another 6 km of ski trails will be prepared, and when everything is linked, in the next year, we will have 45 km of ski trails," Popović said. 

The Director of the Ski Resort of Montenegro said that a contract has already been signed for the construction of a new cable car at Bjelasica – ski resort Žarski. The value of the contract is EUR 9 million. The contract for the construction of a base station in Mojkovac worth EUR 1.5 million has been already concluded.

"A contract was signed for the construction of a six-seater cable car worth 9 million EUR with 3.5 km of ski trails at the ski resort Cmiljača in Bijelo Polje. In the coming period, we will invite a tender for the base station at that location worth 1.8 million EUR," Popović stressed. He added that the tender procedure for the six-seater cable car at the ski centre Štedim and Hajla in Rožaje has been launched. "We will also invite a tender for the construction of a base station worth 1.5 million EUR. The contract for the construction of a six-seater cable car in Žabljak worth 9 million EUR with 4.5 km of ski trails was concluded. In Žabljak, we will prepare an additional 1.8 km of ski trails. We will soon launch tender procedure for the first phase of snowmaking worth 1.3 million EUR,"- the Director of the Ski Resort of Montenegro noted, adding that at least 7 million EUR will be invested in each ski center. 

Director of the Public Works Directorate Rešad Nuhodžić said that the Government of Montenegro allocates 100 million EUR through the capital budget for the projects that have been implemented, the ongoing projects or the planned ones.

01 April 2019 - Prime Minister Duško Marković hosted Secretary-General of the OSCE Thomas Greminger, who is paying an official visit to Montenegro. The meeting noted that Montenegro actively contributes to stability and security, promotes regional cooperation, and is firmly committed to the principles of multilateralism and the fulfillment of OSCE goals. 

PM Marković said that Montenegro had achieved significant results in the field of economy, as well as in the rule of law, but that specific weakness remains, noting that we are devoted to the removal of flaws. 

"Montenegro has built the internal capacity of the institutions to respond in a timely and sustainable manner to the security challenges," Prime Minister Marković said, stressing that significant results were achieved in the field of fighting organized crime. 

PM Marković emphasised that Montenegro is committed to strengthening media freedoms and protecting journalists and media assets. He thanked the OSCE for support and expertise in media laws, as well as for the assistance of ODIHR in the area of electoral legislation and the electoral process. 

Secretary-General Greminger thanked Montenegro for its strong partnership and action following the principles of the OSCE. He noted that the OSCE wants to support Montenegro in the consolidation of democratic institutions, the improvement of the electoral system and the strengthening of media freedom. He also pointed to a focused programme of cooperation in the areas of transnational threats. 

The Prime Minister thanked for the overall support of the OSCE and assessed that this organisation is one of the most authoritative witnesses of contemporary development of Montenegro and its democracy.