Council of Ministers of BIH Holds ITs 5th Session

CoMBIH WORK PROGRAMME ADOPTED 

 

CoMBIH WORK PROGRAMME ADOPTED

The Road of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the European Union was the focus of Work Programme of the Council of Ministers fi BIH for year 2023, unanimously adopted at today’s session, with certain corrections.

Activities will be directed to a better and more effective use of the existing institutional capacities and experiences of the surrounding countries, which have made their progress or became members of the European family, as well as to better awareness rising and creation of atmosphere for a high pubic support to the European reforms in BIH.

The Council of Ministers plans to work on enabling higher utilisation of the European Union funds, especially in the light of IPA III, and intensification of institutional dialogue with the European Union.

The strategic aims of the Council of Ministers of BIH for year 2023 will be fulfilled through nine thematic and substantiated units, which, other the European Integrations, encompass NATO cooperation, rule of law, security, public administration reform, macroeconomic position and economy within the Council of Ministers competences, foreign trade and economic relations, transport and communications, and the area of human rights, refugees, youth, and minority protection.

Among priorities there are also strengthening of regional, bilateral and multilateral cooperation, and a special chapter includes public investments planned at annual work programme of the Council of Ministers of BIH.

Laws ad by-laws, planned in the Council of Ministers Annual Work Programme, are directed to both adjustment with the EU legislation and to creation of a better legal framework in almost all areas, starting from legislation, civil service, human rights, food safety, vine market, agriculture, free access to information, digitalisation, public TV broadcast system, including development and humanitarian assistance and harmonisation of postal traffic regulations.

FBD AND DRAFT BUDGET

The Council of Ministers will consider subsequently, a Framework Budget Document of Bosnia and Herzegovina for 2023-2025, together with Draft Budget of Institutions of BIH and international obligations of BIH for year 2023, as due to extraordinary obligations by Council of Ministers of BIH members, the session was not continued afternoon, as it was planned.

So, the Council of Ministers of BIH will reflect on three decisions, namely, the level of basic salary and level of vacation benefit to employees in BIH Institutions, as well as on amendments and supplements to a decision on way and process of fulfilment of rights of employees in the BIH Institutions to reimbursement of accommodation costs, cost of separation from family and reimbursement for temporary deployment. 

BIH AND CROATIA IN BRČKO-GUNJA BRIDGE RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined a Proposal Agreement between the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Government of the Republic of Croatia on reconstruction of Bridge Brčko (BIH) – Gunja (Croatia) at M-14.1(BUH)/(DC 2014(RH).

According to the Agreement, the costs of the bridge reconstruction will be born equally by Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia in 50% share, namely, the Republic of Croatia will bear about KM 5 million, since the complete costs of the bridge reconstruction, according to data available to date, is estimated at KM 10 million.

Also, the Agreement provided that each of the countries-signatory will pay for construction or adjustment of roads leading to the bridge, at its own territory.

The Brčko District bore a part of costs for development of project-technical documentation. The Proposals Agreement, with negotiations report, will be provided to the BIH Presidency for further procedure, with a proposal for and the Minster of Communications and Transport for the BHI signatory thereof.

GRANT TO RED CROSS OF BIH

The Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision on transfer of property right over a fixed asset, under which the Ministry of Security intends to enable a free-of-charge transfer of ownership to a motor vehicle “fiat ducato” to the Society of Red Cross of BIH.

Since the Red Cross of BIH provides assistance to BIH population and migrants staying in our country, and it expressed a need for the vehicle, the Council of Ministers of BIH, upon a proposal of the Ministry of Security decided to grant the special vehicle.

FEE-OF-CHARGE IMPORT OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN THIS YEAR, TOO 

The Council of Ministers took a decision on temporary suspension and temporary decrease of customs rates for import of electric and hybrid vehicles by December 13, 2023, continuing the implementation of an earlier taken decision.

The Council of Ministers, at its 54^th session last July, annulled custom fees, upon a proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, for import of electric vehicles and decreased customs rates from 15% to 5% for import of hybrid vehicles, which was in effect by the end of last year.

It is about import of new cards to BIH without preferential status of goods imported from  the counties with which BIH has concluded free trade agreements.

The measure is a concrete financial support to citizens and public and private sector for a purchase and import of this kind of vehicles, for the aim of combating air pollution and better environment protection with increased traffic safety.

The increase of import of electric and hybrid vehicles in BIH will enable creation of new jobs with authorised traders or services and increase of investment to electric recharge facilities, the preparation of which is in the process.

The Council of Ministers of BIH wants to contribute to decarbonisation, as one of key pillars of the Western Balkans Green Agenda as to addressing climate changes. 

ACTIVITIES LAUNCHED FOR DEVELOPEMNT OF NEW RULEBOOK 

The Council of Ministers took the Ministry of Security-proposed decision on setting-up a work group for development of amendments and supplements to the Rulebook on storing and destruction of narcotics, psychotropic substances, herbs used for production of narcotics and precursors, with some corrections made at the session.

Representatives of competent state and Entity-level institutions and courts in BIH, designated into the work group should draft amendments and supplements to the Rulebook within a year –long deadline, and provide a proposal thereof to the Council of Ministers of BIH for consideration. The aim is to advance the legal framework for storing and destruction of seized narcotics. 

PLANED ROUTE FEEES REVENUE AMOUNTS FOR 2022

The Council of Ministers of BIH took the Ministry of Communications and Transport-proposed Decision in defining a planned amount of revenues from provision of air navigation services (route fees) in the air space of Bosnia and Herzegovina for year 2022.

According to the defined planed amount of en-route funds for 2022, the Directorate for Civil Air Navigation of BIH (BHANSA) should have KM 64,797,711.00, including Eurocontrol costs in amount of KM 2.973.643.00, the Directorate for Civil Aviation of BIH (BHDCA) should get 2.385.515.00, and the Croatia Air Navigation Control should get KM 6,535,034.00.

The defined planned amounts of basic cists are prone to adjustment mechanism, so that a final return of only real costs of services might be secured, and it will depend on the volume of realised traffic at the BIH air space in year 2022.

REIMBURSMENTS FOR AIRNAVIGATION OPERATORS 

The Council of Ministers of BIH took the Ministry of Communications and Transport-proposed decision on the level of reimbursement paid to aircraft operator by a passenger transported and tonne of goods transported in departure from airports in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Under the Decision, an operator is due to pay a KM three fee to the Directorate for Civil Aviation by transported passenger on leaving BIH airport. Exceptionally, the fee will not be paid for transit or passengers in transfer, passengers with certain free of charge tickets, crew, children under 2 years of age, passengers on flights with a military core, as well as government or flights registered as transport for own needs.

Also, the operator is obliged to pay a fee to the BIHDCA in amount of KM 40 by tonne of transported goods in regular or charter air transport on leaving BIH airport, except for a transit package/cargo and package/cargo exempted from paying transport service.

Fees were defined corresponding to relevant fees in the surrounding countries, taking regard the number of airports for passenger/cargo transfer and number of departing passengers/cargo quantity.

The Decision takes effect at the day of publication in the “Official Gazette of BIH”, and its implementation will start 30 days upon the day of publication in air navigation publications in BIH (AIP).

KM 370,000.00 TO BIH PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE

The Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision to approve KM 370,000.00 to the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina from January-March 2023 current reserves.

The funds are intended for salaries and reimbursement to employees in the Prosecutor’s Office of BIH in QI this year, as the BIH Institutions 2023 budget have not been adopted.

The salary correction for prosecutors and other professional staff was defined in the Law on Salaries and Reimbursement in Court and Prosecutorial Institutions in BIH while the appropriate level of salary to other employees in the Prosecutor’s Office of BIH was defined under a Methodology on amendments and supplements to the Methodology of Employees Deployment within Salary Class. 

MORE TOURISTS IN BIH

The session adopted a piece of information on situation in the tourism sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with suggestions made at the session, which suggests that in  eight months of last year, total 962,897 touristic arrivals were made, with 2,167,603 overnight stays, while 960,383 visits and 2,230920 overnight stays were registered throughout year 2021.

The percentage of foreign tourists was 63%, according to the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, and the leading countries by number of arrivals were Croatia, Serbia, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Slovenia, Saudi Arabia and Germany. Last year’s winter season broke record of visits to the Olympic Mountains, where the Mount Jahorina had 153 days for skiing on 48 km of lanes and 12 vertical transport installations, and Bjelašnica with 135 skiing days, and with an increased number of tourists and revenues for over 30%.

The piece of information suggests that BIH has considerable advantages when in question post-pandemia trends, diversity of natural sights, rivers, sea and mountains, which due to very clean air represent an air-spa, providing for a possibility for development of  individual outdoor tourism, which prevails currently over the mass tourism.

The Council of Ministers of BIH tasked the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations to take activities, in cooperation with competent Entity and Brčko District of BIH institutions, for promotion of tourism in BIH.

BIH IN EU HBRN RISK MITIGATION PROJECTS

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted a piece of information by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on participation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in regional projects aiming mitigation of chemical-biological-radiologic-nuclear (HBRN) risks through an initiative from the EU HBRN Centre of Excellence, with a suggestion made at the session.

The piece of information holds a project list where Bosnia and Herzegovina takes part and contributes to both regional and domestic safety and readiness, benefitting the capacity building for responding to various security risks, including terrorism, and serious accidents caused by deliberate or undeliberate human actions.

It is about three projects: “Strengthening of medical readiness and ability for response to HBRN accidents”; “Increase of protection and security of key infrastructure in SEEE and CA region counties”; and “Strengthening of biological safety measures and SEE region first line safety measures”.

The projects are run by the European Union for the purpose of capacity building as a response to defined risks in member and non-member states.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BIH will ensure, through designated contact-person, overall surveillance and coordination of projects, including a horizontal coordination for HBRN Project implementation.

The conclusions, adopted at today’s session, assigned tasks to competent Ministries and administrative bodies included into project teams, for the reason of a more successful implementation of Bosnia Herzegovina participating projects. 

BIH ARMED FORCES IN HUMANITARIAN OPERATION IN TURKEY

The Council of Ministers of BIH took note of the Ministry of Defence report on sending BIH Armed Forces staff to a humanitarian operation following recent earthquakes in the Republic of Turkey.

A temporary unit of the BIH Armed Forces, comprised from research and rescue specialists and translators, was sent on February 10, 2023 to Turkey for assistance in mitigating aftermath of the devastating earthquake, in accordance with earlier decision by the BIH Presidency.

CONSENT TO APPOINMENT

Upon a Proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a consent was granted for appointment of Fritzscher Clemens to position of a Defence Attaché of the Republic of Austria in BIH. (end)