The Capital is carrying out a number of measures and projects aimed at encouraging and intensive development of entrepreneurship in Podgorica, the manager of the capital, Mr Marjan Junčaj, pointed out in an interview with Dnevne novine.
What project would you single out as the one that you expect from the most?
Mr JUNČAJ: One of the priorities of the capital’s administration is to strengthen the competitiveness of the economy and further improve the business environment. In the past two years, we have worked hard to create conditions for the realization of new opportunities and stimuli for investors to invest and thus create new jobs. By making the decision to declare the business zones of the Capital in May 2020, ten business zones were declared open for investment.
The Business Zone Development Plan has been recently adopted, bringing preparations for Podgorica’s dynamic economic progress to an end. This document defines that the locations in the area of business zones are available in the seen condition, i.e. that the Capital will entrust to investors the users of the business zone, infrastructural equipment. When it comes to benefits, potential investors will be offered plots at a symbolic rental price in locations that are most suitable for economic development due to the proximity of the airport, railway and port, as well as the city itself, reduction of access roads, etc.
On the other hand, the city receives valuable investments that will contribute to the overall business environment of Podgorica, and one of the criteria for allocating a location for the construction of facilities in the business zone will be the number of new employees. We already have further steps ready and by the end of this year, a public call will be published for several locations for the construction of facilities in the business zone.
What else is the Capital undertaking to enhance development of entrepreneurship?
Mr JUNČAJ: Last month, we announced the second competition this year to participate in the program to support creative entrepreneurship, in which, in cooperation with partners Delta City and Strategist, the 12 most creative manufacturers for 2021 will be selected. Support for the winners of the competition includes funds from the budget of the Capital in the amount of €2.000 a month free central stand in the shopping mall Delta City, where they will place and sell their products, as well as marketing strategy and additional promotion provided by Strategist.
When it comes to other support to entrepreneurship, I would like to remind you that the Capital has allocated €224.000 this year, so that in addition to this competition, €40.000 were set aside for support to women’s entrepreneurship, €50.000 for entrepreneurs in Stara Varoš and €30.000 for loans for entrepreneurs. All types of financial and non-financial support to entrepreneurship provided by the Capital were presented at the sessions of the newly formed Council for Improving the Business Environment in the Capital, as well as at the round table Open Day organized by the Secretariat for Entrepreneurship of the Capital and the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro.
Do you have measures aimed at the development of agriculture?
Mr JUNČAJ: A special focus in the upcoming period will be on the valorization of the capital’s potential for agricultural production. The decision on leasing agricultural land on the territory of Podgorica will provide all interested agricultural producers and legal entities with the opportunity to lease at least half a hectare of land, while the maximum lease will depend on the plan of the producer and the crop to be planted. The land is leased for up to 30 years, while the fee for the lease of one square meter of land is one percent of the market value of the land on an annual basis. The obligation of the agricultural producer will be to provide the infrastructure for the land.
What do you think about the model of public and private partnership? Will there be any projects based upon that model?
Mr JUNČAJ: The administration of the Capital thinks progressively in terms of implementing proven concepts when it comes to the implementation of certain projects that it is unable to implement due to lack of funds or because according to competition rules the same service can be better provided in cooperation with the market. We have envisaged the public-private partnership model for numerous projects, and we are especially considering it for the construction of new public underground and above-ground garages, of course, respecting the guidelines arising from the Law on Public-Private Partnership and related bylaws. For these reasons, a Working Group has been formed that will deal exclusively with this topic. The preparation of a public call for the construction of underground garages is underway, which will improve, develop and improve the communal infrastructure and solve the long-standing problem of parking spaces in Podgorica in the most frequent locations. We are considering six new locations for the construction of public garages on the territory of the capital.
At the end of last year, the first Podgorica investment forum was held, a business event which will become traditional. Will it be organized this year?
Mr JUNČAJ: Having in mind the current epidemiological situation, we will postpone the organization of the Second Podgorica Investment Forum for next year, when it will be held in compliance with the valid measures and will be of the hybrid type. As in previous years, the forum will be opened by the mayors of the region with a panel dedicated to the regional perspective and challenges. Certainly, we expect that, as in previous years, a large number of investors from Montenegro, Europe and the world will attend.
The coronavirus epidemic has changed our life in many aspects, including the way in which business functions. What has the Capital done to help businessmen in difficult situation?
Mr JUNČAJ: At the very beginning of the pandemic, the capital issued a special Instruction to direct and harmonize the work of administrative bodies, so the Local Public Revenue Administration postponed the payment of tax liability on the basis of surtax on personal income tax, enabled a reduction in local utility fees for summer and indoor gardens. , reduced the amounts of fees for taxi stands for the period in which the parties did not use the space for parking motor vehicles.
The Agency for Construction and Development of Podgorica released all tenants who have concluded contracts on the lease of business premises owned by the Capital for a period of 90 days and postponed the payment of the fee for communal equipment of construction land for a period of three months.
Total direct and indirect support amounted to about €3.5 million. Furthermore, in order to preserve every job, the Capital has significantly assisted hospitality services providers and other small and medium enterprises in Podgorica. The budget revision for this year provided grants in the amount of €80.000 to support hospitality service providers. In November, a competition was announced to support caterers, according to which a maximum individual aid in the amount of €4.000 will be awarded.
What’s your assessment of the work of the Competence Center and what are future plans?
Mr JUNČAJ: The initial establishment of the Competence Center is one of the activities of the cross-border project CompetenceNET, whose partner is the Union of Employers of Montenegro, and is implemented within the INTERREG IPA program. After almost two years of successful operation, we decided to maximally adapt the Center to the new COVID-19 conditions in a way that we will use the space in the immediate vicinity of the center. Our intention is to turn the port, which is the link between Vučedolska Street and the yard of the residential building, into the first open library in the city. Refreshing that ambience would also mean setting up at least one smart bench, as well as several self-service facilities.
Plans are afoot for new training program with respect to health measures, as well as the rebranding of the Competence Center Podgorica into Birziminium Hub. The use of the space, which includes, among other things, five 3D printers, twenty desktop computers, a digital camera and a smart board, will continue to be free, respecting the principle that events or training proposed by any legal or natural person will be free.
Our goal is to make Birziminium Hub a place where open events, seminars, trainings, meetings and gatherings of the business and IT community for networking will be held, in order to exchange experiences and knowledge. The focus will also be on trainings that can enable everyone to get basic information in order to start their own business without prior knowledge. Topics of education will be entrepreneurship, science, cryptocurrencies, environmental literacy and more.
