Fate or negligence, they have pushed the profession and science in agriculture and rural development in Montenegro into the abyss of life. On this occasion, everyone is in a kind of weightless state - neither in heaven nor on earth. The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management will soon take the entrance exam in Brussels, so that his country and department can gain membership in the great European family. The minister will take the entrance exam in Brussels, and that is good! However, how will the minister pass the exam when he returns home from Brussels, in front of his farmers and the country - is a big mystery?
All efforts of relevant factors in Montenegro to bring agriculture and rural development closer to the agriculturally developed countries of Europe during the transition period have, unfortunately, been fruitless.
Due to their decades of miserable fate, farmers are searching for a cure for their problems with a column of tractors on the street, but they are failing to awaken the consciousness of those who hold their fate and that of this industry in their hands. Financial "firefighters" stand like a gun at attention, but that is of no use.
From glory to hopelessness - story number one
The development path of "13. jul" Plantaža ad is a vivid example of how the path from glory to hopelessness is most often short.
On this occasion, I would like to remind you that the development path of this once famous company reached its peak in the 1970s. The glory of "13. jul" Plantaža lasted for more than 30 years and is a special story. On that glorious path, this company was crowned with a halo the economic pride of Montenegro. Her father and mother were the famous Agrokombinat "13. jul" and its leaders, who, with their skillful efforts, for the first time in Montenegrin history gave economic and political legitimacy to this industry.
Today, there is nothing left of all that, or rather, only memories and display cases in the memorial room of "13. jul" Plantaža ad remain, filled with gold and other medals received in the golden age of this company by the markets of Europe and the world. "13. jul" Plantaža ad today live off their former glory, following the success of their diverse production at a loss, weighed down by the burden of high tax debt to the state (black list of state tax debtors), which once gave birth to them and sent them on the path of a famous business company.
But, in any case, we should not "cry over spilt milk" but rather ask ourselves how it is that Plantaže and the relevant ministry have not had a program for years to pull this company out of hopelessness and direct it towards its decades-long glorious past.
There is no doubt that the problem in question is difficult and complex, but at this point the inevitable question is - what can 2026 bring to this company? rehabilitation or ruin?! Do the management of "13. jul" Plantaž, the relevant ministry and the Government of Montenegro owe the public an answer to this question? And not just an answer, but a solution to the problem!
Long Journey into the Night - story number two
According to the Report of the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management on the results of work in the year that is ending and the Work Program for 2026 (green budget), it would seem that we have another successful business year ahead of us.
On this occasion, the media announced that the Minister of Agriculture and his entourage will travel to Brussels in mid-December this year, where they will take an entrance exam on the topic: Agriculture and Fisheries, Current Situation and European Perspective. There is no doubt that the Minister will pass this test, and it is good that it will be so.
However, upon the minister's return home from Brussels, he faces major problems and the answer to the question of how he will pass the test in front of farmers and his country is, to say the least, mysterious? It is not for me to comment on what the minister will bring from Brussels in his briefcase, but I believe that he knows that his department, according to all the criteria by which the development success of a country in the green economy in the world is measured, is agriculture and the rural economy in Montenegro, on the penultimate or last place in the ranking of agriculturally developed countries in Europe.
On this occasion, it would be good if the minister finally enabled domestic and European scientific and expert thought to sit at the table and recommend what should be done in Montenegro in the coming year, 2026, on the reform path of agriculture and rural economy, towards the European Union?! That would be a move worthy of respect and the second in a three-decade transition period.
Mani, Mani, our hardship - story number three
When I was a young professional, I had the privilege and pleasure of receiving a scholarship from the French Government to stay in this great and beautiful country for two years, in 1971 and 1972, for professional development.
In addition to the obligations I had during my study stay in France, my then employer, Agrokombinat "13. jul", obliged me to study the question: on what foundations does France's agrarian policy rest, noting that the French agrarian school bears the halo of the best development philosophy in the field of agriculture and rural development, from which most European countries, and even beyond, learned.
As a Yugoslav, I managed to be interviewed by people who were the bearers and creators of French agricultural policy. During an interesting conversation with them, I learned, among other things, two important things: (a) The French National Institute for Agricultural Research was appointed by the French Government as the lead agency for the implementation of a major project (agricultural development objectives in France) within the framework of the country's unified agricultural policy, with a high degree of responsibility for the results achieved and (B) The French Agricultural Bank (Banc agricol) stood at that time as a capital financial institution that provided full financial support to projects backed by the National Institute for Scientific Research and Development, on the path of balanced development of life and economy in the French state, from north to south and from east to west.
Thanks to this orientation, the French state has improved its economy and has become not only a textbook example of how this economic area should be developed, but also a world superpower in the field of food production and rural economy development.
At that time, financial support for development goals (projects) was provided by a state financial fund (green budget), which represented 50 percent of the national budget of the French state, while the remaining 50 percent of the budget funds were used to meet the needs of other economic sectors and social activities. With this policy, France ensured both the balanced development of life and the economy in the agricultural area in the long term, and the economic and social stability of the state, also in the long term.
What can I say at the end of this short plea? The transition period from 1989 to 2010 in Montenegro turned everything that was created in the previous economic system into ashes. During that period it is eternal there was only a whining about money, while professions and science were at the back of their lives. Even today smo That's where we are - we hold the top spot on the list of European agriculturally developed countries.
In light of the above, the following question arises: What are the main obstacles for Montenegro on the path to reforming agricultural production in accordance with European knowledge and practice? (a) lack of comprehensive content on the state of agricultural production in Montenegro, with recommendations on what should be done and with which tools so that the Montenegrin agricultural system corresponds to the knowledge and professional and scientific practice of Europe and (B) Through a reformed agricultural policy, precise national goals in this economic sector in the short and long term will be provided, which will for the first time inaugurate a system whereby only two types of food can be produced in Montenegro: exclusive quality food and high quality food (there would be no third quality of food for the market), and finally (C) In accordance with the selected objectives, provide a complex of assumptions for the achievement of the adopted objectives. The proposed reform plan of the new agrarian policy in Montenegro should be considered and adopted by both the relevant ministry and the Government, as well as the Parliament of Montenegro.
The proposed model of agrarian policy in Montenegro is complex and expensive, but in my opinion it has no alternative and corresponds with the views of Mr. Grbić, a professor at the University of Canada, on the current long-term agrarian policy in Montenegro, which we heard during a recent appearance on TV Vijesti.
Bonus video:
