Bosnia and Herzegovina is located in southeastern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula, with its capital in Sarajevo. It borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north and southwest. To the south, it has a 23,5-km-long coastline on the Adriatic Sea, with the town of Neum as its only access to the sea.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a “partially” independent State, under international supervision in the framework of the Dayton Peace Agreements (1995) that put an end to the war in the country, lasted from 1992 to 1995.
The population is mainly composed of three ethno-religious communities: Bosniaks (Muslims), Croats (Catholics) and Serbs (Orthodox). At political-administrative level, the country includes two different entities – Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska – in addition to the Brcko District, which is ruled by its own local government. The executive body at state level is the Council of Ministers, which has 9 ministries to coordinate policies and a rotating tripartite presidency.
Despite some flourished sectors, such as tourism, Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to face significant challenges: a fragile political and institutional situation is marked by growing tensions, persistent emigration of young people seeking better opportunities, a significant presence of the State in the economy, and a rising cost of living reducing families’ purchasing power. These issues hinder a full exploitation of the country’s potential and the improvement of the population’s living conditions.
The Italian Development Cooperation has been operating in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 1992, carrying out emergency interventions for health and logistical assistance to refugees and the besieged population in collaboration with UN agencies.
The political-institutional framework resulting from Dayton agreements allowed a joint effort with international community, strengthening actions for institutional support and economic development. Since 1995, the Italian Development Cooperation focused on reconstruction and development in order to foster bilateral economic relations, opening the Local Technical Unit (UTL) in Sarajevo in 1997.
Currently, the Italian development cooperation program in Bosnia and Herzegovina includes 13 grant projects for a total budget of € 27,1 million, in addition to activities carried out in the framework of regional projects.
