After the publication of data on awards and honoraria for members of the Montenegrin Academy of Sciences and Arts (CANU) last year, the public has been asking how much they receive from the state, and how much they give back to society through scientific activity, criticism and analysis of socio-political processes?
Part of the public believes that their scientific contribution is insufficient and that they are invisible when it comes to important topics for the future of the country. However, CANU responds that their results so far confirm the opposite.
Almost a million euros for fees and honoraria for CANU members…
However, the story of millions of euros for academics does not end there, as CANU will receive over three million euros from the state in 2026. In the past five years, their budget has increased by as much as 135%.
The Center for Civic Education (CCE) claims that this has not been accompanied by greater engagement from academics:
"Article seven of the CANU statute, which regulates their activities, precisely stipulates that one of their activities is to provide initiatives and opinions to state bodies on all topics that are of key importance to Montenegrin society. We are aware that this part of their work is lacking or at least the public is not satisfied with this part of their work," Sara Čabarkapa, coordinator of the Active Citizenship program at CCE, told Television Vijesti.
CANU states that the amounts for awards are determined by law as a form of social recognition, that they have not changed for decades in relation to the average salary in Montenegro, and that they have followed its growth.
"The additional income of certain academics is the result of the current performance of managerial duties, for which compensation has existed since the establishment of CANU, as well as engagement in the creation of the Encyclopedia of Montenegro, a project that is separately financed from the Budget. The scientific and artistic production of CANU members is not equal every year and depends on the type of work they do and the academic's age, but is not directly related to the academic award," said CANU.
Incidentally, 37 academics received annual fees in 2025, ranging from 14.000 to almost 43.000 euros. Five academics received the highest amounts.
Part of the public believes that the engagement of Montenegrin academics so far is insufficient, that is, that they are almost invisible on the public scene, even though the country is going through important political and social processes and is facing phenomena such as attempts to revise history and rehabilitate fascist collaborators from World War II.
The CCE says that, with the exception of rare positive cases, academics have largely remained silent on important topics, citing as an example "academic silence" when debating the potential harmfulness of the investment agreement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), numerous violations of the Constitution, the radicalization of society, vaccination...
Even the opposition notices this.
"They are not doing enough, the fact is that they are not doing enough, because the very fact that the public's focus is directed towards privileges, and not towards the mission of the academic community, clearly shows that something is missing. They must not be just observers of social processes. They must be active participants, they must be those who point to value situations and who point to all social processes," Zoja Bojanić Lalović, a member of parliament from the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), told Television Vijesti.
In the CANU Report on Work for 2025, there is no consolidated data on the number of scientific papers published in that year, but it is stated that they published monographs and studies, proceedings, special editions and periodicals.
CANU says that their previous results speak for themselves and announces new projects
"For 2026, the publication of 53 publications from various fields, 16 scientific meetings, three scientific conferences, 30 scientific and artistic projects, 28 round tables, 32 scientific forums, completion of work on five and continuation of work on 11 lexicons, five exhibitions, and eight concerts are planned," said CANU.
Incidentally, the number of academics in Montenegro, if measured by population, is significantly higher than the number of academics in three key European Union (EU) countries.
While Montenegrin academics received almost a million euros in fees and honoraria last year, in addition to other regular income, their colleagues in Germany and the Netherlands do not charge for their engagement in their academies, but consider it an honor and recognition.
CANU responds that this is not the case in some other EU and regional countries where there is a similar or identical system of rewarding academics, such as in Montenegro.
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