Despite the organizational and institutional changes, the intensive work of the structure for managing EU funds, we rounded off the year 2022 with the successful implementation of already approved programs and projects, numerous new contracts and newly approved over EUR 120 million from European funds through various national, regional, cross-border and transnational programs. , said State Secretary in the Ministry of European Affairs Milena Žižić.
As announced by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Žižić presented key results in the area of the EU support program to Montenegro during 2022 at the Government session, announcing detailed information by the end of January.
As she pointed out, during the previous year, projects from the IPA 2022 program were completed and submitted to the EC for consideration, concepts for the IPA 2023 program were prepared and the Strategic Response for IPA III was finalized.
She reminded that program documents were adopted for bilateral cross-border programs with Albania, Serbia, Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as for interregional and transnational cooperation programs.
She emphasized that during December, all the funds from the national program IPA 2018 were contracted, within which important infrastructure projects are financed, including a new building for clinics for infectious diseases and dermatovenerology, a prison hospital and new facilities in UIKS and reconstructed courts throughout of Montenegro, as well as a network of new microbiological laboratories, which, as she said, will make everyday life easier for citizens.
Žižić said that during the previous year, the number of cross-border and interregional projects from the IPA II program reached 255, which is a significant number considering the size of the country and the number of potential beneficiaries.
She reminded that the Ministry of European Affairs coordinated the preparation and approval of the Framework Financial Partnership Agreement for IPA III, which has been in force since November 2.
– The first financial agreement for the national program IPA 2021, worth over 33 million EUR, was signed in December, and at the beginning of December the EC also adopted the national program IPA 2022, worth almost 40 million – said Žižić.
She reminded that in 2022, two calls for the submission of projects of the Western Balkans Investment Framework were completed, where Montenegro was granted an additional almost EUR 42 million for new infrastructure projects.
– Through these projects, we will get new and reconstructed schools, as well as wastewater treatment plants and sewage networks in Kolašin, Rožaje and Mojkovac, as well as new project documentation for the highway – said the state secretary.
She also reminded that Montenegro was allocated 15 million EUR from the Multi-User IPA for border surveillance equipment, as well as that, as part of the reprogramming of the national program IPA 2023 for the needs of the energy crisis, we are expecting budgetary support of 30 million EUR.
