So that Pljevlja does not become an abandoned mining town

Democratic Montenegro will propose to the local administration in Pljevlja that in the next year's budget, it plans funds for the payment of one thousand euros, as well as the purchase of the corresponding equipment for each newborn child in the area of ​​that municipality.

Explaining the proposal of the Democratic councilor in the local parliament, Bojan Krvavac he said that the Municipality must take urgent measures in order to stop the steep decline in the birth rate and move in the opposite direction.

"Pljevlja has lost close to 15 thousand inhabitants in the last thirty years. Thousands of workers have lost their jobs, the city is devastated economically, economically, and ecologically, but we believe that the biggest defeat of the previous government is the demographic destruction of Pljevlja. The devastating picture of the population in our city reminds us that we must take urgent measures at the national and local levels in order to stop the sharp decline in the birth rate," said Krvavac in a statement.

He said that this measure would cost the municipal budget around 150.000 euros in the coming year, given the optimistic forecasts that around 150 babies are expected to be born this year, ending in December.

Kvavac adds that the devastating data is that only 160 children were enrolled in the first grade this year in the territory of the municipality, and 70 students in the Gymnasium.

"We understand that the local budget is not a financial well of wishes from which money springs, however, if it does not react quickly in the direction of creating conditions for improving the demographic situation, Pljevlja will undoubtedly share the fate of abandoned mining sites from Hollywood movies," said Krvavac.

The Democrats also propose that the local government provide compensation to unemployed mothers in the amount of one minimum wage in the state, during the period of pregnancy and maternity leave. The expected annual budget allocation for this purpose, they claim in that party, would be around 37,500 euros.

They suggest that the Municipality should approach the creation of a Local Social Housing Plan for young married couples, which would be reflected through subsidies when buying an apartment or through the allocation of free wages for young married couples who have not resolved their housing issue and are exempted from paying for building permits.

"In this way, an action should be initiated to solve the housing issue for young married couples up to 30 years of age who live in the territory of the Municipality of Pljevlja or for couples who have left our city and plan to return dissatisfied with their status in another environment. The experiences of Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Trebinje, Cetinje and the like should be used as examples. Determine the means for financing the treatment of in vitro fertilization, following the example of many surrounding cities (Foča, Banja Luka, Priboj)", says Krvavac.

The Democrats also demand that young married couples with children be provided with energy efficiency projects, free furnishing of the living space, thermal facades, carpentry and the introduction of central heating.

"We believe that the fact that 64 percent of the citizens of Pljevlja only heat one room in their apartments is devastating. Special attention should be paid to young married couples from rural areas, because thanks to thirty years of neglect of the village, they are an endemic species. Through subsidizing the Municipality, the poor state of transportation of rural children to their home schools should be regulated, and parents from rural areas should be provided with better conditions through projects implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and the local Secretariat for the Economy through facilitations for the purchase of machines and equipment for work, expansion of livestock and similar . Young mothers living in rural areas are in a particularly difficult situation. The Democrats proposed in the parliamentary procedure the return of allowances for mothers with three or more children, however, we have witnessed that many women from rural areas failed to receive the said allowance due to the inability to regularly register with the Labor Bureau. From the local level, we need to develop a strategy of symbolic financial support for women from rural areas who have children and whose families live in rural areas in order to somehow try to make life and stay easier for our population in the countryside," said Krvavac.

He proposes that, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Public Prosecutor's Office, Eko bajka provide financing for the stay in kindergartens of children from families with a sensitive social economic status, as well as for the stay of another child in kindergarten.

He repeated that the Democrats will ask the Government to pay child allowance to all children up to the age of 18.