Prime minister Dusko Markovic met World Bank vice president Cyril Miller on Thursday. Markovic said that the budget deficit would be eliminated by 2019 if the new financial consolidation measures were applied.
At the press conference after the meeting, the PM said that Montenegro would not borrow money to fill budget gaps any longer and that the borrowing would only be made for development projects.
“Our plan is to eliminate the budget deficit and move into a phase of budget surpluses in three years, while reducing public debt, by applying new measures of financial consolidation which we are discussing with the World Bank, as our partner,” said Markovic.
The PM said that “in previous years we had spent more than we had earned and that this practice had to be stopped”.
“We will not borrow to spend, but only to invest in development projects. This will boost our economy, create new jobs for young people and better and faster valorisation of our resources,” said Markovic.
He called in mind that so far the World Bank had invested more than €453m in the health care, education, agriculture and energy efficiency sectors.
“The value of support at the moment amounts to €107m,” said Markovic.
Miller said that currently the World Bank was supporting three projects in Montenegro.
“Restoring fiscal stability is a key pillar of your program. The second priority is to strengthen private sector growth and job creation, and the third is to provide environmental sustainability. The most pressing priority is establishing fiscal sustainability, and I have to say that I am impressed by the government’s commitment to address this issue. We will support it on that path. This is not about cuts but about investing in the future,” said Miller.
