Corruption in public procurement represents one of the highest risk areas for damage to the state budget and can occur at any stage of the process.
In the analysis “Public Procurement in Montenegro – Transparency and Liability” in 2010, we wrote that “The Police Administration independently filed only three criminal charges over a period of three years on reasonable suspicion that criminal acts of abuse of official position in public procurement procedures were committed. According to available information, no final court verdicts for criminal acts in the field of public procurement have been issued so far.” In the analysis, we also recommended that “The Police Administration and the State Prosecutor’s Office should approach the issue of identification and prosecution of criminal acts in the field of public procurement with particular attention.”
Fourteen years later, we investigated whether anything has changed, through discussions with state prosecutors, police officers, control institutions, and by collecting information on cases, indictments, and verdicts.
We analysed the period from January 2016 to July 2023, during which contracts for public procurement worth over 3.5 billion euros were concluded in Montenegro. This amount is roughly equivalent to one annual budget of Montenegro, which for 2024 amounts to 3.48 billion euros. In the publication, we provide answers regarding the reasons for the absence of criminal liability, as well as recommendations for further action.
