Governor Radović in a High-Level Meeting in Ljubljana

02/07/2024

The CBCG Governor, Ms Irena Radović, attended a high-level meeting in Ljubljana organised by the Center for Excellence in Finance (CEF), which Montenegro has been recently chairing for a year.

A part of the meeting in Ljubljana, which brought together senior officials from the region intending to exchange knowledge and experience in finance and economy, was a round table with Governor Radović as a speaker. Other speakers at the round table included Klemen Boštjančič, Minister of Finance of Slovenia and Chair of the Board of Governors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Marko Primorac, Minister of Finance of Croatia and Ahmet Ismaili, Governor of the Central Bank of Kosovo.

The round table discussed the global context of the development of modern societies facing the challenges of accelerated technological, climatic and demographic changes and continuous economic uncertainty. In such an environment, institutions must preserve independence and stability, the main prerequisite for strengthening the economy, round table participants concluded.

Governor Radović pointed out that encouraging regional and international cooperation contributes to the effective resolution of global challenges and added that the priorities of the CBCG, with the primary goal - preservation of financial stability, are developing institutional capacities, regulatory harmonisation in the context of the negotiation process for EU membership and the promotion and implementation of green finance.

This CEF high-level meeting also marks the start of the second phase of the WeLead project- the EU programme for young professionals in the Western Balkans funded by the European Commission and implemented by CEF. This project aims to improve knowledge and experience in the EU accession process, resulting in strengthened regional cooperation and ensuring faster progress by the Western Balkans towards the EU.

During her stay in Ljubljana, in the context of Montenegro's presidency of an international institution based in Ljubljana, Governor Radović visited CEF and had a separate meeting with Director Ms Jana Repanšek, where they discussed cooperation between the CBCG and CEF and plans for the next period. On this occasion, they discussed the priorities during the Montenegrin chairmanship of the CEF and the possibility of strengthening the contribution to consolidating the objectives of central banks who are member countries of this organisation, which primarily relate to the further strengthening of institutions, the harmonisation of regulations with the EU acquis and the introduction of green and digital components into central bank policies. They also discussed the training offered by CEF to improve central banks' institutional capacities.

CEF is an international institution based in Ljubljana that acts as a regional centre for the exchange of knowledge and promotes the building and development of the capacities of public officials and institutions in Southeast Europe.