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Delegation of the EU in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Missed opportunity for a significant amount of early financing

by AI | 25.Jul 2024 | Europe in brief AI

The EU Delegation in BiH encourages local authorities to ”submit their Reform Agenda without further delay in order not to miss this opportunity completely”.

Flag of the European Union. Photo: Kay Nietfeld/dpa

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Sarajevo (Fena) – Bosnia and Herzegovina has not yet submitted the final version of the Reform Agenda to the European Commission. Therefore, there is a high probability that BiH will not receive the first unconditional tranche of pre-financing in the amount of seven percent after the summer, which represents a missed opportunity for a significant amount of early financing – stated the Delegation of the European Union in BiH.

The EU Delegation in BiH encourages the local authorities to ‘submit their Reform Agenda without further delay to avoid missing this opportunity completely’.

The European Commission continues to provide support to the relevant authorities in completing this work as needed, they added.

– The first tranche of the Growth Plan can only be paid out after the Reform Agenda is submitted and formally agreed upon between the European Commission and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Growth Plan is supported by a new financial instrument, the Instrument for Reform and Growth for the Western Balkans, worth up to 6 billion euros in grants and loans for the entire region – emphasized the EU Delegation in BiH.

The Minister of Communications and Transport of BiH Edin Forto said on Wednesday that the opposition SDA, through its four cantonal prime ministers, refused to support the Reform Plan from the Growth Plan. In a statement, the SDA said that complying with the ultimatums from the entity RS could not produce a Reform Program that is needed by Bosnia and Herzegovina and its citizens.

Otherwise, BiH needed to agree on 112 points from the reform agenda. This is the first tranche of the EU Growth Plan, amounting to 70 million euros, which is seven percent of the one billion euros intended for BiH. (25.07.)

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