Montenegro’s government has accepted a semi-annual report estimating that the finance and labour ministries will need 124 specialists to manage EU funds after the country joins the European Union. The staffing needs reflect planned workloads and do not mean the funds listed in the report have been approved or will automatically become available.
The report, accepted at a government session chaired by Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, covers preparations for the institutions that would administer EU funding after accession. It says Montenegro has moved from general planning to preparing institutions, programmes and administrative capacity, but the proposed model still needs to become a functioning system.
The Ministry of Finance is preparing the management function for the smart and sustainable growth programme. The report estimates it will need 74 staff to manage 1.1 billion euros, process 760 contracts and handle 7,048 payment claims and 373 checks. Those figures are based on planned responsibilities, rather than confirmed allocations to Montenegro.
For employment, education, health and social inclusion, the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Dialogue is preparing a separate management function. Its estimated staffing requirement is 50 people to allocate 500 million euros, process 485 contracts and handle 3,947 payment claims and 253 checks. Together, the two ministries’ planned staffing accounts for the 124 specialists identified in the report.
Across future government working bodies, analyses point to a possible workforce of more than 130 employees, with the total expected to rise when preparations begin for rural development and fisheries. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management is responsible for preparing those areas, but work to define their institutional structure has not started because the relevant legal basis at EU level is not complete.
For territorial cooperation programmes, the report estimates a need for about 11 staff. That estimate uses a model based on one bilateral programme worth approximately 45 million euros. The Ministry of European Affairs is expected to coordinate and manage territorial cooperation programmes for which Montenegro takes responsibility, while the State Audit Institution is designated for a future audit role.
Preparation is uneven: organisational development strategies and workload analyses have already been produced for some management bodies. Alongside the institutional work, officials are developing a framework to connect EU support before membership with access to funding after accession. The preparation is based on the Global Europe agenda for 2028 to 2034, with the aim of making reforms, documents and regulations transferable to a future National and Regional Partnership Plan.
A law on implementing cohesion policy in Montenegro is still needed to establish the legal framework. It would set out institutional responsibilities, management and control, electronic data exchange, procedures for irregularities, financial corrections, recovery of funds and appeals. Government regulations, inter-institutional agreements and internal acts would follow the law.
The government plans to adopt a regulation appointing bodies and structures for implementing the cohesion-policy component of EU funds in the second quarter of 2028. The Ministry of European Affairs is due to prepare the next semi-annual progress report by the end of April 2027.
