Any debt that does not encroach on the pension budget is a civil and economic reassuring signal for the Montenegrin market, economic analyst Mila Kasalica said, adding that the bonds are discreetly more favorable than the arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In response to the question of whether, when it comes to borrowing, it is better to issue Eurobonds or an arrangement with the IMF, she said that from a financial point of view, bonds are discretely more favorable, because at this moment negotiations with the IMF would be insufficient- stabilizing factor for the system.
"By issuing the bond, with the cooperation of the new ministers of finance and economic development, Milojko Spajić and Jakov Milatović, with the team and the support of the previous minister Darko Radunović, the most important input for calming down the entire economic system in the country was provided: cash is at home to refresh cash flows in country," Kasalica told the Mina-business agency.
She believes that in such an environment, the responsible public of Montenegro has no reason to enter into a philosophical discussion of letters, sentences and commas about whether and which arrangement regarding borrowing is better.
"It is good that our MPs hold such discussions publicly, because if the opposite situation were to be assumed for the moment - that there is no certainty about the entry of cash into the system - we would have to fight for mere survival with deep urgent cuts in every position of the country's budget, which would caused a recessionary shutdown of the system", assessed Kasalica.
According to her, in the (non)textbook crisis, cash is a key resource that provides impartial conditions to start work on reforms.
"Any debt arrangement that does not encroach on our pension budget at this moment of crisis is a civic and economic reassuring signal for the entire Montenegrin market," said Kasalica.
Montenegro recently borrowed 750 million euros through the issuance of government bonds on the international market.
She said that in a nominal sense the arrangement with the IMF was avoided. However, the reforms that must be implemented are structural reforms following the IMF's footsteps, and such an indisputable fact can no longer be ignored, in a systemic overview of the necessary steps to stabilize and recover the Montenegrin economy.
"We didn't take IMF money, but we need IMF reforms, to the extent of preserving livelihoods, on a micro level, and systemic improvement towards the European economic community, on a macro level," specified Kasalica.
She believes that, in the coordinated, responsible work of the trio of Montenegrin's newly sustainable economy, any of the possible priorities, in implementation, will announce a new horizon in the economic immensity of Montenegrin's unused perspectives in development.
"First, Montenegro needs structural reforms of responsibility for the quality of public services. This demanding task of the overall public administration must be carried out by restructuring the organization of public administration, both in number and in the recruitment of new profiles that will bring "fresh blood" into the multi-decade petrified structure of non-cooperation and disconnection, i.e. the absence of coordination for serious changes in the work of public servants and employees, as well as of their management staff", stated Kasalica.
She, secondly, states that at the level of clarifying the flow of public money, a thorough analysis of revenue regulations and a detailed clarification of the expenditure flow of public finances must be carried out.
"This will prepare the ground for a possible restructuring of the rates of capture from the economy for earnings. If this is achieved after the end of next year, Montenegro could finally record the initial steps towards a serious, sustainable economy. And, then the issue of public debt will arrive on the agenda of fiscal consolidation in the full capacity of systemic rigor", Kasalica believes.
Thirdly, she states that the sinecure organization of the business of state companies is a professional and systemic shame of the system.
"The ongoing, behind-the-scenes race to harmonize the statutes of state-owned companies with the new regulation has exposed the conundrum of behind-the-scenes interests, and to symbolically 'close the door' to the new executive team for reforming this unprofessional state in our economy, which serves neither the economy nor community, neither profit nor development, but only bonus schemes and unjustified nepotism", assessed Kasalica.
According to her, the fourth represents appeasement due to cash from bonds high on the agenda, the road must prioritize the restructuring of work and responsibilities regarding local services of a public nature.
"In too many municipalities, liquid unsustainability becomes a systemic ballast of consolidated public finances, which will have to at least begin to be reformed during the mandate of the current executive team," Kasalica believes.
Fifth, the decades-long resistance and persistence of micro, small and medium-sized businesses in Montenegro provided an objective basis for the system to slow down, but not stop, during the Covid-19 crisis, by operating on a merciless market.
"It is an extraordinary systemic success, which will have to be additionally financially supported by the new executive power team by April next year, which the international public must understand in the context of the crisis of public health management in a developing country," said Kasalica.
However, as she added, for micro, small and medium, as well as large businesses, an urgent and key task will be to irreversibly strengthen the quality of the economy's financial reports.
"Thus, for the first time in the history of the Montenegrin economy, we would move towards the model of business/owner team support to provide sufficiently clear inputs on the need to systemically reform the organizations of guild institutes of these professions, which ultimately, with knowledge and strong expertise, should unquestionably serve the overall system, commercial and of a public character", stated Kasalica.
Then, and not as exams are hastily organized these days, it is necessary, as he believes, to step towards the serious titles of tax advisors in the system.
"That's why constructive support, through serious proposals of the entire network of businessmen's associations, will be necessary and expected, with a clear professional message to the Priveda Chamber - to the end and without the background of any policy, they must start serving the businessmen of Montenegro", Kasalica believes.
She concluded that, although there is currently insufficient concrete data and activities at the system level, which can objectively support the necessary systemic expectation in the country's economy that similar priorities will be enough to put the three-decade predatory practice of the neoliberal economy on the tainted shelf of history, civil and professional he must not lose hope.
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