The saga of agriculture and rural development in Montenegro has been going on for too long. In the past, everything ended in silence or in principle unproductive attitudes, with life and practice stumbling through the woods, and the current agrarian system and its government along the road. Gentlemen, it is time to raise anchor and start sailing the murky waters of our “bright transitional tradition” and futile development hopes.
It is worth recalling that the first Strategy for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Economy in the Era of Transition for Montenegro, on Market and European Basis (Green Strategy) developed and adopted by consensus by the Parliament of Montenegro in November 1992. The strategy in question was based on the harmony of the natural and market specificities of Montenegro on the one hand, and on the other, positive professional and scientific principles and practices of developed European countries.
The Green Strategy from 1992 envisaged decentralized organization and management of agricultural production in Montenegro and major changes, both in its production and market structure (supply), and in accordance with the most modern market requirements of Europe and the world. As mentioned above, the Green Strategy possessed, among other things, precise current and development goals and assumptions for their achievement, in the short and long term. Its creators were one academician from two faculties (biotechnical and economic) from Belgrade, three doctors of science from Montenegro and Belgrade, and one French master's student - agricultural economist.
Not long after, the hawks of the new transitional agrarian government rejected the Green Strategy like old rags, without explaining their gesture to anyone, and inaugurated centralistic system of organization, management and decision-making, whereby in such a situation the entire Montenegrin agrarian system is placed in the hands of one person - the relevant minister.
Based on the postulates of the highlighted changes, without an official Work Program, the agrarian authorities worked and functioned until 2008, when, under public pressure, the relevant ministry prepared its Strategy for Agricultural and Rural Development in Montenegro (of a cabinet nature), the content of which was unknown to both the public and the Parliament of Montenegro.
Logically, the Strategy in question had no impact on quantitative and qualitative changes in agricultural production in Montenegro. On the contrary, it became a destructive machine and was quickly forgotten that it existed.
What could not be forgotten was the fact that everything that had been done in the previous economic system (socialist and self-government), and a lot had been done, was turned to ashes in 2010. Kudos to the exceptions who managed to survive even in such circumstances!
After the debacle that marked 2010, the agricultural authorities only began drafting a new Strategy for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Economy in Montenegro in 2014, again without the knowledge of the public (cabinet), whose lifespan was limited to 2020 and which was marked as a turning point in Montenegrin social development and the agricultural economy.
The 2014 Strategy had just as many positive impacts on the Montenegrin agricultural economy as the 2008 Strategy.
The new party government of 2020, although facing great challenges, instead of starting to reform the agrarian system in Montenegro, continues da works according to the same matrix, how the agrarian government worked from the 1990s until 2020.
As a result of the indiscriminate agricultural policy, the prevailing opinion in Montenegrin professional and scientific circles was "that the decades-long transitional agrarian government in Montenegro has not fulfilled any of the promises that the state and its citizens expected from it."
Despite the highlighted fact, the previous and new agrarian authorities managed, by 2025, to ensure that 75 to 80 percent of agricultural and rural space in Montenegro remained without life and economy. A defeat with unforeseeable consequences!
On this occasion, Union of Employers of Montenegro writes a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management in 2021, entitled ""Strategy should be written by experts", which propose: “"That the Strategy for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Areas for the period 2014 to 2020 be withdrawn, and that a better quality document be prepared in the coming period."
In a letter to the Ministry, the Employers' Union of Montenegro further states: "That the current text of the Strategy does not meet the most important conditions to be strategic framework for the further development of agriculture and rural areas, nor to be a platform for harmonizing Montenegrin agricultural policy with the EU's common agricultural policy. Therefore, we propose that, with the participation of a wider circle of competent experts, institutions and organizations, as well as prominent agricultural producers, a document be drawn up that will be a good basis for the development of this strategic branch of the Montenegrin economy.".
The 2020 agrarian government only adopted the text of the new Strategy for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Economy in Montenegro in 2022, (also of a cabinet nature), which did not have a significant impact on the scope and quality of the market offer and agricultural development in Montenegro, which was presented in an official document, outside the knowledge of the public and the influence of those for whom it was adopted in an abbreviated procedure, and of course without the knowledge of the Parliament of Montenegro.
However, the 2022 Strategy had a better fate than the previous three, because the Brussels administration gave its approval and seal to the document in question in mid-December 2025, regardless of the fact that the Montenegrin agricultural economy has been pegged for decades to the penultimate or last place in the ranking of agriculturally developed countries in Europe.
At the time I was writing this article, we had several public expert articles on this topic, which in principle support the need to reform the existing concept of agricultural development in Montenegro, claiming that they have had enough of the Strategy, and they put
and the point of increasing the rate of state incentives for the aforementioned industry from approximately 1 to 3 or 5 percent. However, it is clear to the birds that "it's not easy to change from woolen trousers into a European lister suit" (regardless of the thickness of the wallet) and reform changes require much more than the proposed ones and justified 3-5 percent of state incentives for the agricultural economy of Montenegro.
More precisely, it takes a lot of knowledge, money and time for Montenegrin agricultural production to acquire European characteristics and what kind of place in the European and global markets?
In any case, due to all the above, the fact remains that in the aforementioned industry are missing two strategic - roof documents on the basis of which the Montenegrin agricultural economy would be reformed in accordance with professional scientific knowledge and practice of developed European countries, which are; (a) Law on Agriculture and Rural Development in Montenegro and (B) a new Strategy for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Economy in Montenegro, based on professional scientific principles and practices of developed European countries in the short and long term.
We just have to wait and see who will "raise the anchor" of silence and hopelessness in this industry, and steer the murky waters of a three-decade transition?!
Bonus video:
