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Bosnia and Herzegovina

December 1, 2021

The 28 Member States of the European Union fully and firmly support Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) EU perspective as a future member state of the European Union, consistent with the Thessaloniki Declaration of 2003. Along with international partners, it is the EU’s aim to support and embed a stable and viable BiH co-operating peacefully with its neighbors and irreversibly on track towards EU membership.

The role of Delegation of the European Union (EUD) to BiH is primarily aimed at presenting and implementing EU policy, analyzing and reporting on the policies and developments in the country, and conducting negotiations in line with its mandate. The EUD in BiH promotes the EU’s interests that are embodied in common policies relating to foreign and security issues, commerce, agriculture, environment, transport, health and safety, democracy and human rights, and others.

An empowered civil society is a crucial component of any democratic system and should be recognized and treated as such by the institutions of BiH. The civil sector acts as a government corrector, highlighting possible failures, while at the same time advocating for the needs and interests of various groups, and providing concrete solutions to various social problems and anomalies.

The EU’s policy on civil society is based on the Guidelines for EU support to civil society in enlargement countries. These contain a set of objectives, results and indicators which were developed for EU support to civil society. They allow the measurement of progress at country level as well as across the enlargement region. The Guidelines are developed for the period of 2014 – 2020.

Some key recommendations from the EU financed 2016 Mapping Study of CSOs in Bosnia and Herzegovina regard support to the capacity building and networking of civil society organizations, improving a strategic and legal framework for activities and development of civil society, establishment of a system of funding and support to the civil society, and others.

For more information on EU activities in BiH click here.