Montenegro Report Summary 2022

Paul Schamp

10.11.2022

  • Education system faces multiple challenges over chronic shortage in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM fields) graduates.
  • While there is an increase in the coverage of Roma children in primary and secondary education, a drop in preschool and university education is apparent.
  • Quality of Roma education remains of great concern
    • Roma registered with the National Employment Bureau, 96% have the lowest level of education and less than 1% are educated to secondary level. This limits the range of employment opportunities.
  • Little improvement post-COVID to advance reforms on quality of education
    • Quality and relevance of education system, including lack of practical experience of graduates from vocational and higher education, remain key challenges
    • Occupational mismatch is high in tertiary education graduates
    • Montenegro must adopt a costed plan for wide ranging education reforms including inclusive education and improving access to quality education at all education levels
    • Implement the new strategy on early and preschool education 2021-2025 to improve preschool enrolment for all children
    • Finalize then initiate the national vocational education and training (VET) implementation plan 2022-2023 of the VET strategy 2020-2024, as well as putting in place the evaluation mechanism of practical learning at VET and higher education levels.
  • Preschool enrolment rate stood at 48.71% in 2020-2021, still well below the EU 95% target
    • Effected by the COVID-context
  • Number of children with disabilities in both preschool and primary education increased by 21% and 7%.
  • Government approved in December 2021 the strategy for digitalization for education (2022-2027), which is fully aligned with the EU digital education action plan
  • Montenegro still does not have a qualitative, budgeted, multi-annual education strategy and plan for sustainable reforms.
  • Free transport was provided for 600 primary school students
  • Montenegro must align more with the Poznan Declaration on Roma integration in order to fully implement the strategy for inclusive education 2019-2025.
  • New strategy on early and preschool education was adopted in Q4 2021 and its implementation started including support to all preschool institutions for conducting campaign on enrolment, capacity building of staff to implement the parenting program, a workshop on partnerships with Roma and Egyptian families.
  • Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports revised strategy for higher education to cover the period 2022-2026 and draft a new law on higher education. However, their adoption is pending and tangible results are not yet in place
  • Developing a structured monitoring and evaluation of practical education in higher education programs remains to be an area that requires specific attention.

Universal Periodic Review of Montenegro

  • Montenegro’s roughly 620 thousand population has somewhat multicultural assets with approximately 20 to 30 thousand Roma people and a significant Egyptian and Askhaeli community. 
  • As the 2018 Civil Rights Defenders’ report highlights, there is a systematic discrimination against minority groups in Montenegro which affects all aspects of their lives. This is reflected in high unemployment rates, low enrolment rates in educational institutions, and poor living conditions. 
  • Roma and Egyptian children are disadvantaged in the education system, and their attendance rate and enrolment rates in educational institutions reflects this. For instance, only 190 Roma children were attending in preschool in 2017, although it is an improvement compared to the previous year where 103 was enrolled in preschool. 
  • The high primary school drop-out rate of 11% among Roma and Egyptian children further demonstrates the seriousness of the issue, as only 49% of Roma children enrol in secondary education.
  • According to the National Platform on Roma Integration Montenegro report in 2018, the country was recommended to work more on the inclusiveness of Roma people in education and to enhance their social and academic chances to achievement. 1860 Roma children were enrolled in primary school in 2018, while their number was only 1622 in 2017 which shows positive patterns in terms of enrolment. As for secondary school, their number reached 142 in 2018, which also shows improvements compared to the 112 students who were enrolled in 2017. However, only 27 Roma students studied at the university level in 2018.
  • It is also common, that children from lower socioeconomic background have difficulties in accessing education and are more likely to drop out of school. Socioeconomic status also often collides with ethnicity, meaning that many Roma and Egyptian children have difficulties in accessing educational facilities and institutions. They often cannot afford to buy the necessary equipment for school, neither can they pay for transportation, while children having to help parents to make ends meet is not uncommon either.
  • To increase the number of enrolled students and to reduce dropout rates, it is important to support families and communities coming from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Providing free transportation to school and mediators, especially for Roma and Egyptian children, can have a significantly positive impact on enrolment rates.
  • Broken Chalk welcomes the government’s efforts in taking measures to provide scholarships and mentoring programs to children from low socioeconomic background to enhance their enrolment rate in schools and universities. 
  • Child labour in Montenegro is also a serious issue. Children are frequently forced to beg on the streets or are subject to sexual exploitation and all forms of human trafficking. 
  • Montenegro has taken some steps to combat this issue, such as introducing a new labour law that regulates the working conditions of minors. The government has also increased the budget allocated for labour inspections to investigate the working conditions of minors. However, the research found that programs directed to stop children’s work on the streets like forced begging are not effective. The state did take some steps to deal with victims of trafficking, such as establishing an identification team for victims and an operational team that helps to tackle human trafficking. 
  • Despite all efforts, there is still a lot to improve, particularly regarding the legal system which would need special legal advisors who are equipped with the necessary skills to deal with human trafficking cases, especially when they involve minors.
  • Another crucial issue to address is corporal punishment against children in schools and in households in Montenegro. While laws and regulations prohibit such practices in all settings, it is still not entirely eliminated. To ensure the safety and rights of children, Montenegro adopted changes in schools, primary health care, and social services in this regard, especially after research showed that the suicide rates and drug abuse are higher among those who experienced physical abuse during their childhood.

By Noor Mousa

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