Montenegrin municipalities have successfully drawn €124 million from European funds by implementing 167 projects, the majority of which were executed through regional cooperation with neighboring countries, stated Mišela Manojlović, Secretary General of the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro.
Manojlović shared these insights at the conference titled “The Berlin Process and Regional Cooperation: Challenges, Opportunities, and Recommendations for Montenegro,” organized by the Pan-European Union of Montenegro in Podgorica.
“The Union of Municipalities has worked through various initiatives to enhance the absorption capacities of our municipalities,” Manojlović explained. “We provided direct support in project preparation, leading to the joint preparation of 26 projects, mainly infrastructural, and securing funds amounting to nearly €12 million. Through our initiative, we managed to secure a legal solution that ensures municipalities have funds for pre-financing donor projects from the budget of Montenegro, through a revolving fund, thus eliminating a significant barrier to accessing available EU funds. So far, municipalities have withdrawn nearly €4 million from the revolving fund and have returned around €2 million.”
Currently, the Union is working on creating a fund dedicated to the preparation of technical documentation. There is a recognized shortage of mature infrastructure projects at both the state and local levels, which could lead to reduced access to EU funds in the upcoming financial period.
“We contributed directly to this initiative last year by allocating nearly €500,000, which was distributed through two public calls for the preparation of technical documentation in 21 municipalities,” Manojlović noted.
She also highlighted various activities that the Union of Municipalities of Montenegro has been undertaking for years to promote European standards and values at the local level, as well as to foster regional cooperation among local authorities. These efforts include building and establishing mechanisms for not only exchanging information but also enhancing the capacities of local governments through projects, training, and experience sharing. “The Union of Municipalities has become recognized as a resource center that greatly facilitates communication among local governments and with other stakeholders, including national institutions, European bodies, and international organizations,” she added.
“The Union of Municipalities of Montenegro actively participates in strengthening regional cooperation through initiatives and projects such as the Regional Network for Capacity Building in the Water Sector, the EU Energy Transition: Covenant of Mayors in the Western Balkans and Turkey, and the Network of Southeast European Cities for Enhancing Capacity to Attract EU Funds. We also organize regional forums and conferences that bring together representatives of local authorities to exchange ideas and work collaboratively on addressing common challenges,” Manojlović concluded.
