The 53rd Cabinet session – 19 May 2023

The Montenegrin Cabinet, at today's 53rd session, chaired by Prime Minister Dritan Abazović‎‎, adopted ‎‎the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Budget of Montenegro for 2023‎‎, lowering the planned deficit to 193 million euro, equivalent to 3% of the planned gross domestic product. The original 2023 budget projected a deficit equivalent to 5.9% of GDP. The budget revision reflects unplanned revenues from an EU support package to tackle the energy crisis (30 million euros) and the need to provide financing for the early parliamentary elections in June (‎‎approximately‎‎ 5 million euros). Additional funding will be provided to subsidise the employment of persons with disabilities (13 million euros). Total revenue is expected to come in at 2.36 billion euro, 10% above the original target.

‎The Cabinet adopted ‎‎the Tobacco Use Control Programme 2023-2025 ‎‎and adopted‎‎ the Action Plan 2023-2025 for the implementation of the Programme‎‎.

The Cabinet decided to lift COVID restrictions following WHO's decision to declare end to COVID-19 emergency phase.

‎The Cabinet adopted ‎‎the Information on the subscription and payment of capital within the process of increasing the capital of the Bank for the Development of the Council of Europe ‎‎(CEB)‎‎. The Information states that the ‎‎CEB‎‎ Governing Board has decided to increase the ‎‎CEB's‎‎ subscribed capital by 4.25 billion euros, while the paid-in capital increase will amount to €1.2 billion. As for Montenegro's share in CEB‎‎ capital, it currently amounts to 0.12% of the total capital, or 6.57m euros. On this occasion, the Cabinet accepted the increase of Montenegro's subscribed capital in ‎‎the CEB‎‎ in the total amount of EUR 5,109,000. Montenegro's share in the total capital ‎‎of the CEB‎‎ will remain unchanged and will amount to 0.12%.‎

‎The Cabinet adopted ‎‎the Information on the project "Functional analysis of educational infrastructure with recommendations for improvement", with proposals of the Memorandum of Cooperation and the Project Agreement between the Ministry of Education and the United Nations Office for Project Services (‎‎UNOPS)‎‎.

For full press release in Montenegrin, please follow this link.