Possible airport concessions should be carefully weighed and all risks calculated, warns economic analyst Predrag Drecun. In Montenegro, which is primarily an aviation destination and dependent on tourism, handing over the management of airports would be an unintelligent move, according to Alen Scuric, an aviation analyst from Croatia. They both agree that politics is a key obstacle on the way to local experts modernizing and improving the airports of Podgorica and Tivat.
It is very indicative that in the developed countries of the West the state mainly manages airports, while in the East this state resource is given to private individuals who then primarily look out for their own interests, says Scuric. He is explicit that the airports in Tivat and Podgorica should not be given in concession, especially considering that our country is primarily an aviation destination, while the roads, as he says, are catastrophic, and the railway and shipping connections are even worse.
“You have to be extremely unintelligent to give the concessionaire two of your strategic facilities on which the entire life of Montenegro depends, your entire business and existence, especially if you yourself can improve the airports simply, cheaply and with quality”, says Scuric.
And for that, professional and not politically qualified personnel is necessary, he warns.
