Considering that amendments to the Programme of Temporary Structures for the Maritime Domain Zone for the period 2024–2028 are currently under way, and bearing in mind the importance and need to manage the coastal zone as efficiently as possible in the best interests of all citizens of the coastal municipalities, all Montenegrin coastal municipalities—Herceg Novi, Kotor, Tivat, Budva, Bar and Ulcinj—share the position that it is necessary to await the Parliament of Montenegro’s decision on the proposal submitted by the Union of Municipalities concerning amendments to the Law on the Maritime Domain before the Government of Montenegro takes any decision regarding the management of the maritime domain. We believe that any decision taken before the Parliament has stated its position would be premature and could lead to further complications in the management of the coastal zone.
In this regard, we wish to clearly state that it is not appropriate to prepare a five-year Programme of Temporary Structures, which the Public Enterprise for Coastal Zone Management is currently negotiating with the Government of Montenegro, until the Parliament of Montenegro reaches a decision on the proposal submitted by the Union of Municipalities. Instead, we propose that, pending a final decision, the existing practice of signing annexes to contracts with beach and facility lessees be continued in order to maintain economic continuity in the coastal zone and avoid legal uncertainty in business operations.
By way of reminder, at a meeting held in the Municipality of Tivat, the leaders of the coastal municipalities concluded that the existing model of coastal zone management encroaches upon the competences of local governments, preventing them from exercising control over and making decisions concerning large parts of their own territories. It is therefore necessary to urgently review the existing legislation, redefine the competences of the Public Enterprise for Coastal Zone Management, and adopt solutions that will ensure full autonomy for coastal municipalities in managing their coastal areas.
We call upon the competent state authorities to take into account this common position of all coastal municipalities and to restore the relevant powers to local governments, which will contribute to more balanced development of the coast, better resource management, and greater participation of local communities in decision-making processes that directly affect their economic development and tourism prosperity.
Montenegro’s coastal municipalities remain open to dialogue and constructive cooperation with a view to finding the best solutions for the future of our coast, as our most valuable resource, and for the citizens whose livelihoods largely depend on it.
We recall that, in December last year, the leaders of six Montenegrin municipalities signed a joint Initiative for Amendments to the Law on the Maritime Domain, the Law on Spatial Planning and Construction of Structures, and the Law on Ports. The Initiative was signed by the Presidents of the Municipalities of Herceg Novi, Tivat, Bar and Ulcinj—Stevan Katić, Željko Komnenović, Dušan Raičević and Genci Nimanbegu—as well as by the President of the Municipal Assembly of Kotor, Maja Mršulja, and the Vice President of the Municipality of Budva, Nikola Jovanović.
The Initiative states that, until 1992, the coastal zone, as the most valuable part of Montenegro’s territory, was managed by the municipalities. After 1992, these responsibilities were fully centralized through the establishment of the Public Enterprise for Coastal Zone Management, which assumed responsibility, on behalf of the State, for managing the coastal zone. Since August 2013, the Public Enterprise has been carrying out its functions contrary to both the Law on Companies and the Law on Improvement of the Business Environment (Official Gazette of Montenegro, No. 40/10), which, upon entering into force, repealed the Law on Public Enterprises and established a three-year transitional period for the reorganization of public enterprises into companies. In the case of the Public Enterprise for Coastal Zone Management, this statutory obligation has not been fulfilled to this day, which calls into question the legal validity of all its decisions adopted after the expiry of the aforementioned deadline.
