MONTENEGRO : IN ALLIANCE WITH SERBIA

MONTENEGRO                                                                                                       IN ALLIANCE WITH SERBIA

Montenegro ( also called as Montenegrin ) totals 4,026 sq km in area.Montenegro has changed its name many times, from the Latin era under the mane of Prevalis, to the medieval state Zeta, and then to the modern name Crna Gora (MONTENEGRO).A sovereign principality since the Late Middle Ages,Montenegro saw its independence from the Ottoman Empire formally recognized in 1878. From 1918, it was a part of various incarnations of Yugoslavia. On the basis of a referendum held on 21 May 2006, Montenegro declared independence on 3 June. On 28 June 2006, it became the 192nd member state of the United Nations,and on 11 May 2007 the 47th member state of the Council of Europe.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Amongst the population the                                                                                Montenegrins comprise 43.16% ; Serbs 31.99% ; Bosniaks 7.77% ; Albanians 5.03% ; Ethnic Muslims 3.97% ; Croats 1.1% ; Roma 0.42% ; Yugoslavs 0.3% and Others 6.26%
and
Languages spoken are Serbian 63.49% ; Montenegrin 21.96% ; Bosnian 5.49% ; Albanian 5.26% ; Croatian 0.45% and Others 3.34%
and
Religions observed are Orthodox 74.24% ; Muslim 17.74% ; Roman Catholic 3.54% ;

FLAG DESCRIPTION

A red field bordered by a narrow golden-yellow stripe with the Montenegrin coat of arms centered

TOPOGRAPHY

Montenegro is generally Orthodox, and shares a strong cultural affinity with Serbia. But while landlocked Serbia can feel businesslike, Montenegro boasts an easygoing seaside spice. With its laid-back Mediterranean orientation, sparkling coastline, and more than its share of Catholic churches (left behind by past Venetian and Austrian rulers), Montenegro also has a lot in common with Croatia.

And yet, crossing the border, you know you’ve left the sleek, prettified-for-tourists spit-and-polish of Croatia for a place that’s grittier, raw, and a bit exotic. While Dubrovnik and the showpiece Dalmatian Coast avoided the drab, boxy dullness of the Yugoslav era, less affluent Montenegro wasn’t so lucky. Between the dramatic cliffs and historic villages, you’ll drive past grimy, broken-down apartment blocks and some truly unfortunate resort-hotel architecture.

Just beyond Perast is the town of Kotor. Butted up against a steep cliff, cradled by a calm sea, naturally sheltered by its deep-in-the-fjord position, and watched over by an imposing network of fortifications, Kotor has survived centuries of would-be invaders by its imposing town wall, which scrambles in a zigzag line up the mountain behind it. Though it’s enjoyed a long and illustrious history, today’s Kotor is a time-capsule retreat for travelers seeking a truly unspoiled Adriatic town. The town, with 3,000 living inside the old town walls, has just enough commerce to keep a couple of restaurants and hotels in business.

With an inviting Old Town, it seems custom-built for aimless strolling. Though it’s sometimes called a “little Dubrovnik,” that’s a stretch. Kotor is low-key, less ambitious, and much smaller than its more famous neighbor. Yet visitors find that Kotor — with its own special spice that’s exciting to sample — is a hard place to tear yourself away from.

Wander the enjoyably seedy streets of Kotor, drop into some Orthodox churches, and sip a coffee at an al fresco cafe. Enjoying my bijela kava (“white coffee,” as a latte is called here), I watched kids coming home from school. Two girls walked by happily spinning the same kind of batons my sisters spun when I was a tyke. And then a sweet girl walked by all alone — lost in thought, carrying a tattered violin case.

Even in a land where humble is everything’s middle name, parents can find an old violin and manage to give their little girls grace and culture. Letting that impression breathe, it made me happier than I imagined it would.

TOURISM

Montenegro is well suited for development of all kinds of tourism,as it both has picturesque coast and mountainous northern region.The country was a well-known tourist spot in the 1980s, yet, the Yugoslav wars that were fought in neighboring countries during the 1990s crippled the tourist industry, and destroyed the image of Montenegro as a tourist destination.

It was not until 2000s that the tourism industry began to recover, and the country has since experienced high growth of number of tourist visits and overnight stays.Government of Montenegro has set the development of Montenegro as an elite tourist destination a top priority. It is a national strategy to make the tourism a major, if not single largest, contributor to Montenegrin economy. A number of steps were taken to attract foreign investors to Montenegrin tourism industry.

Some large projects are already under way, like Porto Montenegro, while locations such as Jaz Beach, Buljarica, Velika Plaža and Ada Bojana have perhaps the greatest potential to attract future investments and become premium tourist spots on Adriatic.Some of the problems that currently hamper the development of Montenegrin tourism are inadequate infrastructure, notably the road infrastructure in the north, and electricity and water supply in the south of the country.

ECONOMY

Until several years ago, Montenegro was the country whose economy was based on the public (socially-owned) property. Since such a concept of ownership has proved to be inefficient, the process of privatization of economy was initiated. Despite the very difficult and in many instances specific conditions in which the process was taking place, the results gained fully justify the efforts. The necessary legislation was adopted and The Privatization Council founded as the Government’s body responsible for managing the process of privatization. The intention is to carry out the process in two ways:
1. The sale of shares to strategic investors- Selling shares by means of international tenders is one of the strategic moves to accelerate the entire process of privatization. It is planned to offer the shares of some thirty Montenegrin companies for sale through the international tendering procedure.

2. Mass voucherisation (MVP) as a privatization model, which, besides accelerating the process of privatizing economy, stimulates the development of the capital market and financial institutions. The Act Of Modifications Of And Supplements To The Act Of Privatization Of Economy provides that all the citizens of age of the Republic of Montenegro be entitled to vouchers. For the MVP process, around 2.3 billion DEM was apportioned from the Development Fund and from the shares of the state capital.

Potentials by sector
1. Industry
Over the last 50 years, industry has been the chief carrier of the economic development ofMontenegro. In that period, the growth of the power industry, metallurgy (steel and aluminum), and transport infrastructure were making the basis for the overall development. The industrial facilities had been sized to the needs of the previous Yugoslavia so that 90% of the produce of Montenegro was marketed outside the Republic.Thus, Montenegro presently has at its disposal the facilities for producing 400,000 tons of crude steel; 1,000,000 tons of bauxite; 280,000 tones of alumna; 100,000 tons of aluminum; 75,000 tons of sea salt; 2,700,000 tons of coal; while the power plants (hydro-electric power plants of Perucica and Piva, and the thermoelectric power plant of Pljevlja) produce around 3 bn KWh per year.

Such a basic economic structure is supplemented with a variety of industries – metal-processing, engineering, wood-processing, textile, chemical, leather and footwear, ready-made clothes, household appliances, construction and forestry machines – as well as with significant capacities of the building trade.Moreover, there are considerable capacities of industrial processing and finishing of agricultural products: abattoirs; fish-processing plants; flour mills with grain silos; dairies; bakeries; breweries and juice factories; fruit processing factories; grape processing plants and wine cellars; medicinal herbs processing plants; tobacco/cigarettes industry; confectioners, etc.Due to isolation of FRY and the war waged in its neighborhood, the state in this sector of economy is poorer than before, but with adequate investments and modernization of the production programs the outputs can within a relatively short period of time again become competitive in the world market.

2. Agriculture
Agricultural lands and water resources are well preserved from the industrial pollution and thus provide for the production of healthy (organic) foods, particularly meat (poultry, lamb, goat, veal/beef); then milk and dairy produce; honey; fish; vegetables (tomato, pepper, cucumber, and other); fruits (plum, apple, grapes, citrus fruits, olive); high quality wines (Vranac, Krstac, and others); as well as naturally pure potable water of superior quality (tested to the highest world’s standards). Growing on the Montenegrin soil are some specific herbs such as “forest fruits” (blueberries, edible mushrooms) and wild medicinal herbs, especially sage (Salvia officinalis), whose exceptional properties are known throughout the world.Forests and woodlands cover the area of 720,000 ha, thus making 54% of the total surface area of the Republic; of these, the major part (572,000 ha) is in the north-east.

3. Maritime economy and transport
Montenegro has a fleet of more than 40 ships, with the total carrying capacity of 1,000,000 tons. The Port of Bar, at the entrance to the Adriatic, is equipped for handling the cargo of around 5 million tons annually. In the immediate hinterland of the Port is the Free Trade Zone, offering broad possibilities for the development of manufacturing and service activities and for the construction of warehouses, from which the goods can be easily transported by sea or by Bar-Belgrade railroad and further to the Central Europe. The road network of Montenegro is 5,227 km, of which 1,729 km are modern arterial and regional roads while the rest are local. The total length of the normal-gauge railroads is 250 km, electrified on their most part. The railway junction in Podgorica connects the inland with the Adriatic sea via (the Port of) Bar, whereas the railroad Podgorica-Bozaj connects Montenegro with the neighboring Albania.

Montenegro is third in Europe in terms of per capita foreign direct investment, and so far it has had wealthy Russians primarily to thank. Russian investments totals an estimated at $2 billion, owning among other strategic assets the aluminum factory in Podgorica. And Russians also

account for the largest growth rate among international tourists. The increased exposure from their powerful norther neighbor has expectedly received some popular backlash. Most Montenegrins hope that NATO membership and a possible fast track to the EU will give them more leverage to attract Western capital and reduce Russian dependency. Because for now, a country with GDP per capita of less than $5,000 isn’t exactly in a position to be picky.

SPORTS

Serbia and Montenegro were represented by a single football team in the 2006 FIFA World Cup tournament, despite having formally split just weeks prior to its start. Following this event, this team has been inherited by Serbia, while a new one was organized to represent Montenegro in international competitions.On March 24, 2007, the Montenegrin national team came from behind to win its first ever fixture,2-1, in a friendly game against Hungary at the Podgorica Stadium.On their 119th Session in Guatemala City in July 2007, the International Olympic Committee granted recognition and membership to the newly formed Montenegrin National Olympic Committee. Montenegro made its debut at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Water polo is one of the most popular sports in the country. Montenegro won the European Championships in Malaga, Spain on July 13, 2008 over Serbia 6-5 in a game that was tied 5-5 after four quarters. This was Montenegro’s first major international competition for which they had to qualify through two LEN tournaments. Montenegro’s first division in water polo consists of five clubs, all with an annual budget of one million Euros and more – VK Primorac Kotor (2007 and 2008 Montenegro champions), VK Jadran Herceg Novi (2006 champions of Serbia-Montenegro), VK Budvanska Rivijera Budva, VK Prcanj and VK Bijela. From the coming season 2008-09 they will be joined by a sixth club, VK Cattaro. Additionally, they qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing but did not win.