27 March 2019 - There are many reasons why you'd want to visit Montenegro, the most beautiful coastline, dramatic history, the mountains that rear up to meet the sea and a crystal clear bay. Still, this country has recently worked on significant improvements in the number and quality of hotels, so now is a great time to visit this Mediterranean gem and enjoy the luxury that leads to a perfect holiday.

According to the recent data published by the Ministry of Sustainable Development, the number of hotels in Montenegro in 2018 increased by 25.

The Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism stated that the newly opened facilities that have 1985 units in total are mostly luxury high-class hotels.

Within the reports by the Ministry, it is explained that six new hotels built in 2018 have a service that meets five star standards and nine hotels have four stars. In the total number of new hotels, 24% of all units meet the requirements of five-star services, and 36% meet those of the four-star hotels.

"The number of beds in five-star hotels is 50,48 per cent of the total unit number, and the beds in four-star hotels make up 21 per cent of the total number of beds in hotels that started working in 2018," the Ministry's document said.

The newly opened hotels include Perla Residence (Podgorica), Hotel Rivijera – Iberostar (Herceg Novi), Hotel Jadran – Iberostar (Perast), Hotel Holliday Village Montenegro (Ulcinj), Hotel Chedi – Luštica Bay (Tivat) and Hotel Lazaret (Herceg Novi).

Furthermore, when it comes to the categories that foreign tourists at the global level mostly look for in Montenegro, eight hotels have three stars and two facilities have two stars.

The Ministry believes that the growth of the structure of accommodation capacities of high category, as the most important segment of the tourist product, has been particularly contributed by numerous stimulus measures.

These stimulus measures include the abolition of the obligation to pay utility bills for building a four and five star hotel, reducing annual real estate tax to 30 per cent for hotels with four stars, reducing annual real estate tax up to 70 per cent for five-star hotels in priority tourist sites, and lifting the obligation to pay an import VAT for products and services related to the construction of five-star hotels and a low VAT rate of only 7 per cent for hotel accommodation.

26 March 2019 - Minister of Defence Predrag Bošković paid an official visit to the State of Maine, where he met with Governor Janet Millsand National Guard Commander Major General Douglas Farnham. 

At the meeting with Governor Mills, Minister Bošković emphasised the importance of Montenegro's full membership in the Alliance, and outlined the role that Montenegro has in ensuring lasting peace and stability in the Western Balkans.

He pointed to the importance of comprehensive bilateral relations between Montenegro and the United States, with the view that one of the crowns of these relations is precisely the State Partnership Program – SPP between Montenegro and the State of Maine, which is based on many compatibilities of Montenegro with this US federal state.

Boškovic also stressed that the Ministry of Defence and the Armed Forces of Montenegro are particularly satisfied with the intensity of defence cooperation that should be strengthened alongside the development of relations in other areas of the state partnership. 

Governor Mills praised the overall progress of Montenegro that resulted in NATO membership and expressed satisfaction with the high-quality the State Partnership Program. She pointed out that the State of Maine is open to establishing more significant cooperation with Montenegro, especially in areas such as tourism, economy and education.

At the meeting with Commander Farnham, Minister Bošković stressed the high-quality bilateral defence cooperation, emphasizing that the United States represents the main ally and strategic partner to Montenegro in the area of development of defence capabilities. 

He said that the long-standing partnership between the Armed Forces of Montenegro and the National Guard of Maine within the mentioned State Partnership Program not only actively links these two structures but also gives particularly evident results in terms of improving the existing capacities of the Montenegrin armed forces.

The Minister expressed the gratitude for the support of the National Guard of Maine in strengthening the interoperability and readiness of the Armed Forces of Montenegro for participation in international peacekeeping missions, as well as helping to fulfill the conditions for full membership in NATO. Furthermore, Bošković pointed to the continuous improvement of bilateral defence cooperation, especially in the areas of cyber defense, human resources development, and joint exercises and training. 

General Farnem pointed out that the National Guard of the State of Maine will continue to strongly support the Armed Forces of Montenegro in fulfilling capability goals, and expressed the expectation that the defence cooperation of the two countries will be continued for mutual benefit. He said he was pleased that the SPP has directly influenced the development of the armed forces of both countries.

26 March 2019 - Minister of Sports and Youth Nikola Janović said that the last night's football match between Montenegro and England, which has been seen as a sports festival in the country, is trying to be presented as sports game that contained incidents, but there has never been, and there will be no basis for racism, chauvinism, and nationalism in Montenegro.

"If a group of individuals really sent inexplicable messages, I strongly condemn it on behalf of the Government and the Ministry of Sports and Youth, and I say that there is no and there can be neither justification nor understanding in Montenegro for those people. As a former sports player, athlete and now as a Minister, during conversations with the foreign public I say that in my country there has never been, and there will be no basis for racism, chauvinism, and nationalism," Minister Janović stressed.

The Minister recalled that Montenegro is a civilized state, the only one that has gone through the horrors of the nineties without a war on its territory, the only one in the neighborhood that genuinely and thoroughly has been cherishing multi-ethnic and multi-confessional life for centuries.

"Our clubs and our national teams, our Government, our cities and villages and our families are the fortresses of the richness of our diversity. The spirit of my country was shown in a carnival atmosphere in which this match and the previous matches were awaited in the streets of our capital city both by domestic and foreign fans, applauding the anthem and the visiting team's players even when they scored. As well as the mutual joy after the match without any incident," Minister of Sports and Youth Nikola Janović emphasised.

24 March 2019 - Montenegro will develop an economy based on know-how and innovation, at the same time preventing the brain drain, Prime Minister Duško Marković underlined at the conference on the occasion of ending the project Towards Entrepreneurial Innovation Ecosystem in Montenegro.

24 March 2019 - Montenegro has done a lot to improve its business environment, but there are still some grave challenges that the country should focus on. Preventing other countries from taking over high-quality investors is of great importance, said the representatives of Adriatic Marinas.

Foreign Investors Council in Montenegro issued during the last week the White Book where they assessed the business environment in Montenegro with 6.49. They stated that the economy in Montenegro was stable last year, but some concrete results in the implementation of reforms fell behind.

They stressed othat the grey economy is still a problem, as well as that the rule of law must improve and that a platform for the prevention of frauds and evasion of any kind must be provided.

Representatives of Adriatic Marinas said that environment for foreign investors in Montenegro is changing rapidly.

“We have made some important moves, especially in the sphere of navigation and super-yachting industry. However, not everything has been solved yet,” said the representatives of this company which is the owner of Porto Montenegro.

The real challenge for business in Montenegro is the market since other yachting destinations across the world are very competitive and they, naturally, want to take over the clients from Montenegro.

“Our top priority is that we have our nautical industry that is active during the whole year and to do our best so that the benefits can be felt in the entire country. We must continuously promote all our business possibilities and Montenegro, as a destination. Also, we must keep eliminating business barriers and maintaining tax rates at a low level so that we can attract foreign investors and make Montenegro stable business destination,” said the representatives of Adriatic Marinas.

Representatives of Montenegrin Telekom think that the business environment in Montenegro is much better and that some serious reforms have already been implemented, but they also noted that there is still space for even more progress.

Director of the Sector for Corporate and Legal Affairs in Montenegrin Telekom, Pavle Đurović, said that the regulatory framework referring to the domain of telecommunication is harmonized the European in no small extent.

One of the most significant challenges that all operators are generally faced with is the increase of the so-called OTT providers – Google, Skype, WhatsApp, and Viber.

“Providers of such services offer practically the same voice services as traditional operators, but without investing in networks because they use networks and services of the electronic communication operators. Also, they do not employ a workforce; they do not pay any taxes. This is a problem for all European telecommunication operators, and we are glad that Montenegrin authorities are ready to tackle this issue by the European practice and European regulatory framework,” concluded Đurović.

25 March 2019 - Minister of Culture Aleksandar Bogdanović is paying an official visit to the Republic of France, where he met with French Minister of Culture Franck Riester. 

The two ministers discussed the cooperation projects that are being implemented by the already signed Agreement on cooperation in the field of culture, as well as on new exchange initiatives. 

Furthermore, they discussed the intensification of cooperation and exchange of programmes and artists in the fields of music and theater, visual arts, as well as the possibilities for translating Montenegrin literature into French and French into Montenegrin. 

"A special focus of our future cooperation will be on creative industries. To develop this area, Montenegro is developing creative hubs that will be a synergy of art and entrepreneurship, both of domestic and foreign artists," Minister Bogdanović said, adding that the French experience will be of great importance to us. 

The ministers also discussed the exchange of good practices and experiences in the field of cultural heritage protection, project development and exchange of programmes between libraries, museums, archives, and cinemas. 

Bearing in mind the many years of friendly relations and cooperation between Montenegro and the Republic of France, as well as the fact that the building of the former French mission was located in Cetinje, two ministers discussed the possibility of joint restoration of this facility. 

Minister Bogdanović informed Minister Riester about the activities that are being implemented in Montenegro in order to transfer the remains of members of the Petrović Njegoš dynasty to Montenegro in the near future, and pointed out that the support of the Ministry of Culture and other relevant institutions of the Republic of France will be of particular importance in the transfer of the remains of Mihailo Petrović Njegoš, buried in Paris.

Minister Riester pointed out that the Republic of France appreciates the importance this initiative has for Montenegro and its last ruling Petrović Njegoš dynasty and stated that they would provide all the necessary assistance. 

Minister Bogdanović expressed satisfaction with the friendly relations between the Republic of France and Montenegro in all areas and expressed the gratitude for the continued support that France provides to Montenegro on its path to full membership in the European Union. 

Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of Montenegro in France Zdenka Radulović and President of the Association of Artists of Montenegro Igor Rakčević also attended the meeting.

25 March 2019 - The Orange team has reason to celebrate this Monday evening! Cedevita has defeated Budućnost VOLI in front of 4,500 fans in the Dražen Petrović Hall and took the lead in this semi-final series. The audience watched a big battle down on the court as each side really gave its best to win the match. Eventually, Cedevita’s deadly duo Cobbs-Pullen made a difference by scoring 43 points combined for the home team.

Game 2 in this series will be played in Podgorica on Sunday, March 31. If Cedevita wins that match, they will advance to the 2019 ABA League Finals. If Budućnost VOLI manages to tie the score in this series, then Game 3 will be played in Zagreb on April 7.

Cedevita was up by 76:73, with 4 minutes left on the game clock, while Budućnost VOLI had a fast-break to reduce the gap. However, Petar Popović missed an open-lay up, while then Goga Bitadze and Earl Clark also missed open shots after making offensive rebounds! The visiting team was punished for those three missed shots, as Cedevita made 4 points in a row and jumped to 80:73. For this kind of game, a 7-point lead was a huge advantage, and Cedevita remained in the lead until the very end.

Justin Cobbs was the player of the match as he was a true leader of the Orange troops. He was the top scorer of Cedevita with 23 points, while he also made five assists alongside his defense which was exceptional this evening. He also had one steal and performance index rating of 22.

Cedevita won the battle in the paint. The home team had seven rebounds more than Budućnost VOLI squad, while some of their offensive rebounds were very important in the key moments of this match.

Source: ABA League

25 March 2019 - A ruthless England survived an early scare to stroll past Montenegro 5-1 in their European Qualifiers clash in Podgorica on Monday night.

Creator Ross Barkley then turned scorer as he touched in Callum Hudson-Odoi's shot (38) after his Chelsea teammate cut in dangerously from the flank on his first England start at just 18.

The impressive Barkley got his second and England's third with a simple finish from Raheem Sterling's cut-back (59), Harry Kane got in on the act by tapping home (71), again from Sterling's unselfish centre, and Sterling himself then wrapped up the win with a cool finish from sub Jordan Henderson's fine through ball (81).

England now look ahead to June's UEFA Nations League after two convincing wins from two in European Qualifiers Group A, and have now won five consecutive matches for the first time under Gareth Southgate having scored five for the second time in four days.

England dominated the ball early on, but Montenegro went ahead with their first attack as Hudson-Odoi failed to get up for a header, allowing Vešović to run towards the box, unintentionally play a one-two with England defender Keane and curl past Jordan Pickford from 15 yards.

But Keane atoned for his sloppiness for the opener by levelling for England just after the half-hour mark, tucking a header into the bottom right corner from Barkley's free-kick on the right.

By then, Hudson-Odoi had switched from right to left wing, and the tactical move had paid off as he cut in from the flank well and saw his shot touched home by Barkley ahead of goalkeeper Danijel Petković.

Hudson-Odoi looked bright going forward, and his excellent run and shot forced a good stop from Petković after the break, but Barkley gave England a two-goal cushion as he finished off at the back post after Sterling's centre from the by-line had fortuitously fallen into his path.

Kane got his 22nd goal for England in 37 caps, tapping home directly from Sterling's pass as Barkley had superbly played in the Manchester City man, showcasing England's quality on the counter.

Source: Sky Sports

23 March 2019 - Minister of Transport and Maritime Affairs Osman Nurković spoke at the press conference following the Government of Montenegro session about what was done in the area of regular and investment maintenance, reconstruction and construction of state roads in 2018 and what is planned for 2019.

Minister Nurković pointed out that the budget for 2018 amounted to 244,400,000 EUR (out of which 207,200,000 EUR was intended for the Bar-Boljare motorway's priority section and 800,000 EUR for the road crossings belonging to the Railway Directorate's budget).

The 2019 budget plans an investment totalling 45,087,263 EUR.

Projects implemented from European Investment Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development loans, in line with the Budget Law, will be funded up to the amount of their execution.

Under the Programme for reconstruction and modernisation of main and regional roads, works will be carried out on 25 roads, and 27,300,000 EUR will be allocated to the rebuilding of the main and regional roads. The projects will be funded from the General Revenues of the Budget of Montenegro, the European Investment Bank loan and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development loan.

In the last five years, a total of 197.84 million EUR was invested in maintenance, reconstruction and construction of regional and trunk roads in Montenegro, said the director of the Directorate for state roads within the Ministry of Transport, Mirsad Ibrahimović during mid-October 2018. As he said, this had an impact on more comfortable, economical, safer and high-quality transport and, therefore, resulted in better accessibility of Montenegro as a tourism destination.

“The European Commission also recognized insufficiently developed infrastructure of the Western Balkans. It, therefore, aims to increase the maturity of projects and enhance the development of the transport network through the available mechanisms of Berlin process,” said Ibrahimović during this occasion.

24 March 2019 - According to the latest data published by DataReportal, in 2018, the total number of active social media users in Montenegro amounted to 380.000 thousand, which is 2,7 per cent more than a year ago. The data also shows that 330.000 Montenegrin citizens are active social media users that access the networks via mobile devices.

Online service DataReportal is designed to help people and organisations all over the world to find the data, insights, and trends they need to make more informed decisions. Millions of people in more than 150 countries around the globe already read their reports and analyses each year, including employees of many of the world's top companies, award-winning journalists, key decision-makers in sovereign governments, and leading academics. DataReportal has recently published a Global Digital Report, which provides essential insights into the use of the internet, mobile devices, social media, and e-commerce around the world, including essential global headlines. The Global Digital Report also includes the latest trends for each country, and the most recent report shows the data for Montenegro during 2018.

According to the report, last year, 465.700 citizens of Montenegro had access to the Internet, which is 74 per cent of the total population and 5,9% more than in 2017.

The total number of mobile connections in Montenegro amounted to 1.24 million, which is 197% of the total population. The percentage of mobile connections that were pre-paid was 52%, and the percentage of mobile connections that were broadband was 56%. The overall mobile connectivity index score was 70,45 (out of a maximum possible score of 100), while in relations to the affordability of devices and services, the index score was 68,80 (out of a maximum possible score of 100).

The per cent of the population aged 15+ that reports having an account with a financial institution was 68%, while 17% of citizens own a credit card.

You can get some more details in the graphs shown on pictures, and you can see the complete report on DataReportal’s official website.