30 December 2018 - In the year behind us, we worked hard to ensure a better economic and social environment for employees, but also full legal security and the rule of law, Prime Minister of Montenegro Duško Marković said in a New Year's message. 

"We tried to eliminate the weaknesses that jeopardized our system and the smooth functioning of the state and society as a whole. We have achieved success in economic policy - achieved significant economic growth as well as the stability of the budget. I believe that today we can say that each of you felt some benefit from the results we achieved," PM Marković said. 

He stressed that we would continue vigorously next year to provide higher incomes for pensioners, employees in education and health care, but also in other sectors. 

"We want to open new jobs and ensure regular and just social benefits. And of course, in the dialogue with employers, we want to provide a better standard of private sector employees," the Prime Minister said. 

We succeeded, he stressed, in development policies despite the still present need to defend the state and identity from those who still call for its disappearance. 

"I want to say that Montenegro is the eternal home of all its citizens, and its sovereignty and independence cannot be the subject of discussion or compromise, and that is why I want to be close to one another in 2019, to better understand one another and return with our entire civil being to what has adorned Montenegro for centuries - and that is coexistence, harmony, and tolerance," Prime Minister Marković stressed. 

On behalf of the Government and in his name, Prime Minister Duško Marković congratulated the citizens on New Year, wishing them good health, personal and family happiness.

30 December 2018 - From the moment of activation, there has been a sharp rise in the number of investors ready to purchase stocks of the Electric Power Company of Montenegro, which tells a lot about our potentials, economy minister Dragica Sekulić said in an interview with Pobjeda, a daily.

“I am pleased to reveal that it is about big companies from the EU member states, the United States, China. This, of course, means we would have even greater responsibility in selecting our new strategic partner. What I can tell you right now is that we are going to look for a partner capable of making the Electric Power Company of Montenegro a greater company with larger profits,” said Sekulić.

According to Sekulić, the Montenegrin economy does not need a buyer of Electric Power Company of Montenegro but a strategic partner that would contribute to growth and development of this company through efficiency and increased competitiveness.

“It would be unrealistic to expect massive revenues from the sale of Electric Power Company of Montenegro and that it can be further developed in a modern and sustainable manner while being majority-owned by the state. The Electric Power Company of Montenegro has two unique production facilities and best overview of development potentials in the country, but valorization of both requires openness to contemporary experiences and practice,” noted Sekulić.

She also explained that the implementation of put option required paying of 250 million EUR in seven annual installments for stocks of the Italian energy company A2A.

Source: Cafe del Montenegro

30 December 2018 - "The Western Balkans need to become part of the European Union (EU) as soon as possible, and we will remain committed to providing support to our partners in the region," said Romanian foreign affairs minister Teodor Melescanu.

This is especially important due to the fact Romania is to take over presidency over the Council of the EU as of 1 January, and Melescanu stressed that it would be essential for Montenegro to open all negotiation chapters to come closer to the European community.

“Romania will continue with encouraging the enlargement process by using all the forthcoming key moments for further promotion of the EU involvement in the region, as well as commitment of our partners to reforms and demographic transformations. We will keep stressing the importance of joint support to the Western Balkans in order to be able to respond to the requirements of the accession process,” concluded Melescanu.

They have been, Melescanu said, fully aware of the fact Montenegro needs to open all negotiation chapters while at the same time being focused on the internal preps, which enable closing of some chapters.

Back in July 2018, representatives of the Government of Montenegro hosted the Prime Minister of Romania, Vasilica Viorica Dăncilă, who paid an official visit to Montenegro.

"We particularly appreciate the visit of Prime Minister Dăncilă ahead of Romania's first presidency of the EU Council next year, in the first half of 2019. At the same time, we want to congratulate you in advance and wish Romania success during the presidency and thank you for the fact that Montenegro and the Western Balkans are already high on their agenda," the Prime Minister of Montenegro said during this occasion.

Dăncilă said that she had very constructive discussions with Prime Minister Marković and emphasised that in the future, the two countries will pay more attention to sectoral cooperation and cooperation in the field of energy, education, culture, and tourism, as well as cooperation in the field of investments.

"We decided to organise an economic forum together to present one of the first steps in promoting cooperation between the two countries," Romanian Prime Minister Vasilica Viorica Dăncilă concluded.

December 30, 2018 - New Year's program in Bokelian cities is very diverse, so it's hard not to find a party for your taste. Whether you are a fan of good rock, love pop or enjoy the sounds of folk music, Kotor, Tivat, Budva or Herceg Novi will satisfy your preferences. Here's a review of the New Year's programs that will make it easy for you to make a decision.

NEW YEAR PROGRAM - KOTOR

Kotor enters the New Year with the sounds of good rock. After the Children’s New Year and performances of Kotor’s musicians planned for today, tomorrow a two-day Rock New Year's program begins, where the most popular regional rock names of today will perform.

NEW YEAR PROGRAM - TIVAT

The main New Year program in Tivat is closer to the preferences of fans of folk music, but the organizers made sure to offer a diverse accompanying program.

NEW YEAR PROGRAM - HERCEG NOVI

Herceg Novi and its guests will enter the New Year 2019 with the hits of the Belgrade rock band "Riblja čorba" and their frontman Bora Djordjevic. They will perform at Igalo on 31 December from 23:00. At the same stage at 21:00, as a pre-band, Kotor’s band "Light under the black mountain" performs.

NEW YEAR PROGRAM- BUDVA

This year, Budva organizes a jubilee New Year celebration on the square in front of the Old Town.

December 30, 2018 - Within the celebration of the Children's New Year at the Arms Square in Kotor, the central event “Waiting for Santa Claus“ starts today at 4 pm. Activists of NGO Karampana and Kotor's artist Goran Moškov Gonzo have prepared an interactive program with a message – Let's Love, This is the Year of Love! As part of the event From Christmas to Christmas, follow the performances of the Kotor musicians in the program named "Kotor-City of Good Music." General sponsor of the event From Christmas to Christmas is Luštica Development company.

Over the last year, Kotor had a record number of concerts that featured some of the greatest names of the world, regional and local classical, jazz, pop and rock music, orchestras and smaller instrumental ensembles, choruses, and soloists. Thus Balkan recognizes Kotor as a city of good music, and proportional to the number of inhabitants and concerts is also the most prominent concert stage in the region.

29 December 2018 - On the occasion of the New Year and Christmas holidays, the Ministry of Defence established earlier this morning a video link with the Marmal base in Afghanistan and members of the IX contingent of the Armed Forces of Montenegro in the Resolute Support mission.

Montenegro's soldiers were addressed by Minister of Defence Predrag Boškovićand Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces of Montenegro, Brigadier General Dragutin Dakič. They pointed out that not only the Armed Forces but the whole of Montenegro is proud of Montenegro's soldiers in Afghanistan.

Wishing them to return to their families with their regular obligations in Montenegro, Minister Bošković emphasised the reputation Montenegrin soldiers have in this, but also in all missions and operations in which they participate.

"All information indicates that a Montenegrin soldier is an example of a soldier in the Resolute Support mission. We work together to raise the quality of the entire Armed Forces and the capabilities of each of its members. You need to know that everything we do here is done for you in missions, away from your homes and your country," he stressed.

The Defence Minister added that the Ministry and the Armed Forces of Montenegro would continue to do so in the future, regardless of their size and possibilities, to contribute to the global aspirations for maintaining international peace and stability.

"And when you return, we should together build the Armed Forces of Montenegro and place it on the playground where it had been through Montenegrin history, as one of the most appreciated parts of the society," Minister Bošković concluded.

General Dakić said that he is still under the impressions from his recent visit to members of the IX contingent, especially because of the assessments he heard in Afghanistan from allies and partners about the way Montenegro's soldiers perform their tasks. "You have set standards not only for the Montenegrin Army but also for the partners with whom you are on the mission," the Chief of General Staff underscored.

He concluded by telling the soldiers in the Resolute Support mission to be persistent and professional until the end, as a Montenegrin soldier is expected to be.

29 December 2018 - The Government of Montenegro adopted the Programme prepared by the Ministry of Science for encouraging innovative startups in Montenegro, which will contribute to the creation of attractive solutions for the innovative ecosystem.

The Program was adopted along with the Action Plan 2019-2021 and represents the result of a half-year cooperation within the national partnership for creating an innovative ecosystem and expert support, through the project Horizon 2020.

“The Program itself includes measures for eliminating legal obstacles, development of advanced financial systems, encouraging and attracting talents with the aim of creating knowledge and new values, fostering an entrepreneurial culture and access to markets of innovative and entrepreneurial projects,” the Ministry of Science said.

The Government allocated around 4.5 million EUR for encouraging innovative startups over three years.

At the World Summit Awards in Vienna, which took place in March 2018, the Montenegrin innovation Beeand.me was named the best innovation in the Business and Commerce category. The World Summit Awards is awarded each year to local digital innovations that, by their creation and action, managed to create value that has influenced the development and prosperity of society.

BeeAnd.me is a Montenegrin startup founded in 2016 by young researchers Elma Hot and Alija Dervic, students of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the University of Montenegro. Elma is a student of master studies and is engaged in the first Montenegrin Centre for Excellence in Bioinformatics (BIO-ICT). After completing his master's studies and engagements at the BIO-ICT Centre, Alija continued his Ph.D. studies at the Technical University of Vienna, where he was engaged at the EMCE Institute.

December 28, 2018 - Via Ferrata Kotor is open to all interested lovers of a healthy lifestyle and adrenaline entertainment. Montagna Travel Montenegro Agency, which manages the trail, has made sure to enrich the winter season in Boka Bay, where citizens and guests do not have a lot of outdoor activities during winter months. On the occasion of the holiday and the winter school break, they offered promotional prices under the weekend action, which will last until the beginning of March. You can go uphill tomorrow, and the next offer is January 5th and 6th.

Via Ferrata represents a secured mountain trail that through the help of cables and metal galleys crosses difficult parts of mountainous massifs. Ferrates are suitable not only for professional alpinists but also for people of average physical fitness who are not active in hiking and sports.

29 December 2018 - A group of deputies of the ruling coalition has recently submitted an amendment to the Draft Law on the Government budget, which envisages new aid to the flag carrier Montenegro Airlines (MA) of 5,5 million EUR. That is just one of a dozen amendments that were submitted to the bill, reports Montenegrin news agency, Dan.

Namely, in the explanation of the Draft Law, it is stated that the funds above will be provided to Montenegro Airlines if legal requirements for the use of funds are met, all to fulfil the obligations of this company.

The explanation of the submitted amendment also states that the Ministry of Transport and Maritime Affairs, headed by Osman Nurković, submitted an updated request to the Ministry of Finance on December 25 on the above issue.

It is expected that in the forthcoming period the amendment will be accepted and the company will receive new budget support. Last year (2017), the company acquired 15 million EUR from the state, while it is unclear whether the country provided aid to MA in 2018. Montenegro Airlines currently has an accumulated deficit of over 70 million EUR.

Montenegro Airlines is the flag carrier of Montenegro that operates scheduled and charter services throughout Europe from its hub at Podgorica Airport with a second base maintained at Tivat Airport. The company has an excellent reputation for a safe and reliable carrier, and the country decided to provide all the support Montenegro Airlines needs in overcoming its financial difficulties.