Montenegro’s Innovation Fund has opened the first phase of its GovTech programme, inviting public institutions to submit challenges by 15:00 on 1 December 2026, the Fund said. The call seeks problems that innovative technologies could address, with the aim of improving services for citizens and businesses, cutting operating costs and making better use of resources.
Eligible applicants include ministries and state administration bodies, public institutions, independent regulators, public agencies and funds whose majority founder is the Government, local governments, the Central Bank, majority state-owned companies and other entities that meet the call’s conditions. Institutions with the same or similar problems may submit a joint application.
Challenges must have a substantial effect on an institution’s work or the quality of public services, and must not be adequately resolvable through standard procurement procedures. Applications must identify a target group and expected result, while the institution must provide the capacity to implement and test a solution.
Katarina Lalović, executive director of the Innovation Fund of Montenegro, said innovation development should start from institutions’ real needs. The programme connects “challenges from practice” with the expertise and capacity of companies and research organisations to develop solutions that improve institutional performance and services for citizens and businesses.
The programme has two phases. After public-sector challenges are selected, companies and research organisations will propose solutions in the second phase. Funding is reserved for projects chosen following evaluation in that phase, supporting the development and testing of prototypes and pilot projects, or the adaptation of existing solutions to institutions’ needs.
Previous cycle selected 16 projects
In the previous cycle, institutions submitted 91 challenges, of which 76 were selected to proceed to the second phase. The call for solutions drew 141 proposals, and 16 projects were selected for implementation with 18 public institutions.
The Fund approved more than 2.2 million euros for those projects. Their total value, including beneficiaries’ contributions, exceeds 2.7 million euros.
The Fund will present details of the new call at an Info Day on 12 November at 10:00 in the MVP hall on the second floor of Montenegro’s Science and Technology Park in Podgorica. Online “Open Doors” sessions will also run on Wednesdays from 9:00 to 10:00 via Zoom, with access details to be published on the Fund’s website and social media.
Applications, public-entity declarations and team-member biographies must be submitted in the prescribed format through the programme portal after users register an account. The call and accompanying documents are available on the Innovation Fund’s website.
