Montenegro adopted its first National Action Plan (NAP) in 2017 for the period 2017-2018. The NAP was developed by a number of government entities, including the Ministries of Defense; Interior; and Foreign Affairs. The NAP does not mention civil society involvement in the NAP development process. The NAP is mostly oriented towards ensuring women’s participation in the security sector at the local (police force), national (armed forces) and international (peacekeeping) levels. It also addresses the issue of human trafficking in Montenegro and provides mechanisms to address it regionally and internationally as well as protecting women and girls from discrimination and gender-based violence. The NAP specifies, under each objective and activity, a responsible entity for achieving the tasks identified and provides indicators to measure their implementation. While relevant ministries and donors are responsible for funding the NAP, there is no specific budget attached to the NAP.
Montenegro reported on the implementation of its NAP, as well as WPS commitments, in its national reporting for Beijing+25 and in preparation for CSW64 (2020). Specifically, the country provided the following updates, among others (pp. 50-51):
- Reporting on the implementation of the Action Plan is regular and is carried out on an annual basis. The Ministry of Defence and the Army of Montenegro are the bearers of responsibility for 20 activities, out of which 17 activities are already implemented, one activity is on-going and two activities have not been implemented.
- In February 2019, the draft of the new Action Plan with the Implementation Program 2019- 2020 has been made and it is in the process of adoption.
- The Committee for Gender Equality of the Montenegrin Parliament, at the joint sessions with the Committee for Security and Defence, examines reports on the implementation of the Action Plan for the Implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution on Women, Peace and Security in Montenegro, defining measures and activities to integrate gender equality issues in the processes of defence system reform and at all levels in which decisions are made and policies are created and implemented.
- The Committee has, in the previous period, organized an International Conference “Cetinje Parliamentary Forum: Women, Peace and Security” with the aim of implementing and understanding Resolution 1325 and its accompanying resolutions (R1820, R1888 and R1889) as well as exchanging regional and international experiences when it comes to women’s participation in the security system and the definition of future activities in this field and the continuation of good regional cooperation between parliaments and governments, as well as with the non-governmental sector.
Montenegro became an independent state in 2006, after a referendum that resulted in the country’s peaceful separation from Serbia, both of whom were previously part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Montenegro does not have a recent history of armed conflict; however, it was involved in military aggression during the war in Bosnia (1991-1995). Montenegro is also a member of NATO and participates in UN peacekeeping missions in Afghanistan, Liberia, Cyprus and Somalia.