SERBIA and MONTENEGRO

NATURAL ENVIRONMENT: Serbia and Montenegro are bounded on the north by Hungary, on the east by Romania and Bulgaria, on the south by Albania and Macedonia (FYROM), and on the west by Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. On the southwest, Montenegro has a 199-km coastline on the Adriatic Sea, an arm of the Mediterranean. Serbia and Montenegro’s total land area was 102,173 sq km, less than half the size of the former country of Yugoslavia. Serbia accounted for 86 percent of the former country’s total land area. Montenegro, which lies to the south, occupies a wide swath of territory that extends southwest between Bosnia and Albania. Rich and fertile plains comprise much of the north, while limestone ranges and basins of the Balkan Mountains and Carpathian Mountains characterize the east. In the southwest the ancient mountains and hills of the Dinaric Alps dominate Montenegro. Mount Daravica, on the border with Albania, rises to 2,656 m. Major rivers in Serbia include the Danube, Drava, Sava, Drina, and Tisza. The Danube, one of Europe’s most important waterways, flows east through the northern part of Serbia into Romania. The Sava, Drava, and Tisza rivers are also navigable and are used for commercial transport. Most rivers in the region drain northward or northeastward to the Sava and Danube rivers. Lake Scutari straddles the border between Montenegro and Albania. The region’s primary natural resources are minerals, notably its rich deposits of antimony and lead. Coal, zinc, gold, and copper are also commonly found, and there are small deposits of natural gas.
AGRICULTURE: The agricultural sector remains central to the region’s economy. Chief agricultural products include corn, sugar beets, wheat, potatoes, grapes, and plums. Cattle, pigs, and sheep are also raised. The Vojvodina region in northern Serbia contains the region’s most fertile agricultural land. Forestry also makes a significant contribution to the economy.
ENERGY: Serbia and Montenegro’s energy policy was centered on an ambitious program to convert the entire country to natural gas, exploiting small deposits of natural gas in the Vojvodina region of Serbia and access to Russian natural gas pipelines. However, wider economic difficulties hindered the conversion process. Attempts to develop domestic petroleum deposits have been unsuccessful, and the region remains heavily dependent on imported oil. Hydroelectricity provides about one-third of the energy produced in the region. The slow pace of improvements to the infrastructure in the business sector has resulted in the continued use of highly inefficient forms of energy. This has restrained economic growth and could hinder Serbia and Montenegro’s economic development into the future.