Governor Žugić at the Meeting of the IMF and World Bank Constituency in Sarajevo
15/09/2022
The Governor of the Central Bank of Montenegro (CBCG), Radoje Žugić, is attending the annual meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Belgian-Dutch Constituency held today and tomorrow in Sarajevo. In addition to the World Bank and the IMF’s high-ranking representatives, delegations from 15 member countries of the Constituency, led by finance ministers and central bank governors, attend the meeting in Sarajevo.
The main topic of this year’s Constituency meeting relates to the current and future World Bank and the IMF programmes and policies dedicated to finding solutions for current global economic challenges, primarily high inflation and energy insecurity.
High-ranking officials of the aforementioned institutions pointed out that the risks related to macroeconomic and financial stability in the coming year are highly emphasised due to the current geopolitical situation and the previous economic and health situation consequences. The war in Ukraine could further exacerbate the gas supply problem while curbing inflation could have more severe than expected consequences for the global economy. Further, tighter financial conditions on the global market could cause problems in debt servicing, especially for countries with pronounced fiscal vulnerabilities.
As part of the event, the Montenegrin delegation held bilateral meetings with senior officials of the IMF, Bo Li, Deputy Director General, Paul Hilbers, Executive Director and Alfred Kammer, Director of the European Department, and the World Bank, Anna Bjerde, Vice President and Koen Davidse, the Executive Director.
Governor Žugić informed the interlocutors about the current economic situation in Montenegro, with a special emphasis on the banking sector situation. He announced that the banking system was stable and that key balance positions were recording positive trends and achieving record levels. According to Žugić, the Montenegrin banks’ lending activity in the current year is very intense, preserving the system’s stability and maintaining client trust. In seven months of this year, banks approved 826.8 million new loans, 37% more compared y-o-y, 74% more compared to 2020 and 27% more compared to pre-crisis 2019. Moreover, deposits continue the growth trend, which amounted to over 600 million euros in the first seven months of the current year and confirmed the clients’ confidence in the banking sector and the supervisor.
Mr Li and Mr Davidse expressed their satisfaction with the positive situation in the Montenegrin banking sector and welcomed the CBCG’s efforts to preserve the credit institutions’ stability and health. They also expressed their satisfaction with the cooperation with the CBCG, with an open invitation for its further intensification in the coming period and focusing especially on current challenges.
At today’s meeting, it was confirmed that the next annual meeting of the Belgian-Dutch Constituency would be held in Montenegro. On that occasion, Governor Žugić expressed the hope that the meeting in 2023, “despite the gloomy prospects, will be held in a more favourable environment, without wars, pandemics and with contained inflation.”
