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fixed interest rate, which was reduced to 0.88% in July. Podgorica
started drawing funds in 2015.

The 44-kilometre stretch was completed by China’s CRBC and consists
of 18 tunnels, 13 bridges, five viaducts and four interchanges.

Bar-Boljare makes up the Montenegrin part of the future Belgrade-Bar
motorway that will connect the Serbian capital with the main
Montenegrin seaport, Bar. Serbia started the construction of its part of
the motorway in 2021.

Podgorica hopes to start the construction of the second stretch of the
Bar-Boljare motorway, from Matesevo to Andrijevica, in 2024.

The government is now working on the feasibility study for the second
stretch and hopes to be able to start preparatory works on tender for
the construction of the stretch in 2023.

3.7.6 Major Sectors

The tourism sector remains of key importance for Montenegro as it
contributes around a quarter to its GDP. In 2022, the sector showed
signs of strong recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and performed
nearly at the pre-pandemic levels despite the Russian war in Ukraine.

Montenegrin Tourism Minister Goran Djurovic projected that the country
could record a better summer season than in 2019 despite the Russian
war in Ukraine. However, Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic has warned
that the number of foreign tourists during the summer season in the
country was lower than anticipated due to the significantly increased
prices at hotels and restaurants.

Despite that, revenue from tourism reached €916mn in Montenegro by
the end of September, up by 30% y/y.

The World Bank has said that the tourism sector is expected to
continue recovering in 2023, although deteriorating growth prospects in
the EU and the region can affect the recovery. Most tourists visited
seaside resorts in October (83.3%), followed by the capital Podgorica
(11.7%), mountain resorts (2.7%) and other sites (2.4%).

Montenegro wants to invest in its agricultural sector in order to become
more independent amid the disruption of global supply chains. In July,
the European Commission adopted the IPARD III programme of
Montenegro for the period 2021-2027, worth €63mn. The programme
has eight support measures, with Montenegro implementing three of
them.

Investments that will be supported by the IPARD III programme refer to
the acquisition of equipment and machinery, construction, and
reconstruction of buildings.

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