Locations
Podgorica 17, November 2020 - Citizens will now be able to find and perceive local government financial data more easily via the new portal available at www.lokalnefinansije.me which will bridge an information gap between citizens and their governments concerning government finances. The portal, which is developed in cooperation between the Ministry of Finance of Montenegro and UNDP, with support of the Ministry of Finance of the Slovak Republic - will enable efficiency and transparency of local budgets offering a platform for their monitoring.
Inviting the citizens to check out the new portal UNDP RR Daniela Gasparikova said that ‘’We at UNDP trust that this portal will contribute to more transparent and accountable public finance management in Montenegro. I hope that it will help the citizens, civil society and all interested parties to exercise their right to monitoring, planning, budgeting and execution of the public finances at the local level. I expect that this commendable endeavour will create the platform for constructive and open dialogue between institutions and citizens about economic and social priorities that these budgets are to support. The portal is part of the broader support provided by the Government of Slovakia to the public finance management in Montenegro,’’ said Gasparikova.
The Ambassador of the Slovak Republic in Montenegro, H.E. Boris Gandel is delighted that a Slovak-funded project will contribute to the transparency and accountability of public finance management in Montenegro.
’’It’s another proof of our sincere friendship and partnership, and Slovakia has supported Montenegro since the renewal of its Statehood. We have done a lot of work in my country after the Velvet Revolution to transform Slovakia into a modern democratic society. Transparency was one of the essential principles of this process. We appreciate the efforts of all parties involved, and I am pleased and proud that the Ministry of Finance of the Slovak Republic, together with Slovakia, contributed to the implementation of this project. Considering transparency as one of the essential principles within the European Union, allow me to congratulate Montenegro for having taken another step towards its European future’’, Mr Gandel concluded.
As a new tool, the portal will change the way citizens interact with local governments in Montenegro, helping them to be more responsive to citizens' needs.
Ms Snežana Mugoša Director at the Directorate for Local Self-Government and State-owned companies at the Ministry of Finance of Montenegro pointed out that "the main aim of the project of data visualization of local budgets in Montenegro is to improve transparency of public finances at the local level. Namely, all local self-government units are required to submit monthly reports to the Ministry of Finance, as well as to publish their quarterly reports on their websites. The portal is a one-stop location, where all financial data are consolidated and displayed in a simple and visually appealing way", Mugoša said.
The portal provides instant access to the current and historical financial data, featuring an overview of the summary data including revenues, expenditures, arrears and debts of all municipalities in Montenegro, over the 2009 to 2019 period. Besides, it provides a detailed comparative overview of individual budgetary items of all municipalities in Montenegro, within the same reference period. The new portal which will be updated annually is developed under UNDP project "Strengthening Transparent and Accountable Public Finance Management in Montenegro’’.
Videos:
