Montenegro must have a strategy to protect domestic production, which is sinking due to the trade imbalance, as evidenced by the recent decrease in milk purchases, which unfortunately puts producers in a situation where they are wasting it, said Dušan Golović, a member of the presidency of the Civic Movement (GP) URA, today.
"Against all this, we have the lethargic attitude of the Government of Montenegro towards farmers and domestic production. Milk imports are increasing, purchases are falling, and the state is doing nothing to protect its brand, but on the contrary, it is stimulating the import lobby that is destroying our villages," Golović said in a statement provided by URA.
He called on the Government and the Ministry of Agriculture to urgently adopt measures to protect domestic production and promote Montenegrin brands and products in domestic stores.
"Additional taxes on imported goods, so-called levies, can serve to protect domestic producers and in no way jeopardize competitiveness in our market, because we are obligated to do so under the CEFTA accession agreement," Golović points out.
He notes that data from the Statistical Office, as publicly released, show a growing imbalance between imports and exports, to our detriment.
"In the first five months of 2025, imports amounted to 1,67 billion euros, while exports were 237 million euros, which means that the import-export coverage is 14,2 percent, which is devastating. Montenegro imports vegetables and fruits, water, milk, even though it is an ecological country, we have clean land, rivers. We have enormous potential for organic agriculture, so its promotion, branding and promotion on the domestic and foreign markets would be very important for the country itself, but also for its producers. Our 'Montenegro 365' program includes tax breaks and more intensive investments in domestic production, especially organic," said Golović.
He also reminded that the Nikšić URA campaign program proposed increasing the amount of subsidies for farmers from the territory of the Nikšić municipality.
"The state must help agricultural producers, to whom it should be grateful that they have not yet given up on this business, but also motivate other citizens to start agricultural production. The villages have sustained Montenegro, and today we see a sad picture of our hearths being extinguished in many villages. Only with strong villages will Montenegro be strong - with fewer imports, with a better tourist offer, with mowed meadows, with herds on pastures, with beautiful gardens, with fewer possibilities for fires," concluded Golović.
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