The European Commission adopted today the Reform Agenda of Montenegro, following the positive opinion of the member states of the European Union.
Today, the Commission also approved the reform agendas of Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia, which opens the way for the withdrawal of money from the Instrument for Reform and Growth within the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans.
The growth plan is a combination of grants and soft loans totaling six billion euros for the period 2024-2027. 383,5 million euros have been provided for Montenegro, of which 110 million euros are non-refundable, and 273,5 million euros are soft loans. The European Commission plans to allocate seven percent of the total amount at the beginning of the implementation of the Growth Plan as a kind of pre-financing, and the rest in six half-yearly support tranches, depending on the level of implementation of the planned reforms.
Montenegro should receive the first tranche of around 29 million euros at the end of the year.
"I am impressed by the work of our partners from the Western Balkans on their reform agendas. This shows that they are committed to the success of the Growth Plan. It is our road map to bring the economies of the Western Balkans closer to ours. And to give their companies access and the means to compete in our unique market. Everyone benefits, and it is a big step towards the European Union," said Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The EU member states approved the reform agendas for the five countries of the Western Balkans on October 12, in order for them to receive the right to receive financial resources from the European Growth Plan for the region. Only Bosnia and Herzegovina did not get the green light, because it did not submit a complete reform agenda to Brussels, which was not even considered at the level of EU countries.
The reform agenda of Montenegro 2024-2027 was adopted by the Government at the end of September. The document contains a total of 32 indicative priority reform measures within four priority sectors - Business environment and private sector development, Digital and energy/green transition, Human capital development, Rule of law and fundamental rights and 14 subsectors.
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