DPM Borovinić Bojović meets with Minister Gutić

Deputy Prime Minister for Health and Social Welfare Jelena Borovinić Bojović met with Minister of Social Welfare, Family Care and Demography Damir Gutić.

The meeting focused on an analysis of the current situation in areas relevant to the social protection system, with particular emphasis on improving cooperation and ensuring more effective coordination in addressing issues of importance to citizens.

Particular attention was paid to the needs of the most vulnerable groups, including pensioners, socially disadvantaged citizens, persons with disabilities, children and families at risk of poverty, single parents, older people, as well as other beneficiaries of the social protection system.

The meeting also addressed the need to ensure that support for these groups is timely, accessible and better tailored to their actual needs.

Particular emphasis was placed on improving communication and cooperation with local governments, given their important role in identifying citizens’ needs and providing support at the local level.

The meeting also addressed the Ministry’s obligations within Montenegro’s EU accession process, with a particular focus on Chapter 19 – Social Policy and Employment. It was highlighted that the obligations under this chapter have been successfully fulfilled, while its swift closure is expected in the coming period, which would represent another important step for Montenegro on its path towards European Union membership.

In the coming period, the focus will be on implementing the remaining obligations within the Ministry’s areas of responsibility, ensuring their effective implementation and compliance with the envisaged deadlines, while continuing efforts to improve the social protection system.

It was assessed that communication and coordination between the national and local levels need to be further strengthened so that citizens’ needs can be identified in a timely manner and concrete solutions implemented more effectively on the ground.

The meeting reaffirmed the commitment to continued joint efforts to create a more efficient system that is more accessible to citizens and better responds to the needs of the most vulnerable groups.