Poor performance of BH governments’ in 2015 CCI’s Annual reports on monitoring the performance of all executive and legislative bodies in BiH for 2015 have been presented to the public. These activities are carried out within the program CSSP - Civil Society Sustainability, and are financially supported by USAID.
CCI announced the annual reports on monitoring the performance of the governments and parliaments at the state, entity's and cantonal levels. More than one million citizens were informed about the work of their representatives during 2015, and the authorities were familiarized with the recommendations for improvement of the work of the said institutions – the adoption of such recommendations is advocated by CCI.
The bottom line of the main findings of monitoring is that in 2015, the parliaments and the governments did not live up to the expectations while on the other hand the conflict between the authorities and the opposition aggravated. Also, many administrative-territorial units failed to form their governments within the legally defined deadlines. A package of recommendations for improving the performance of the parliaments and governments was presented. Among them we single out an initiative for improvement of BH election legislation aimed at setting precise deadlines for forming the governments as well as an obligatory possibility of extraordinary elections in the situations of non-observance of deadlines, blockade of work of institutions and failure of the political actors to reach agreements within „reasonable deadlines“.
Summary reports in the English language can be downloaded here.
„State of the Nation“ is the first report of the independent monitoring of implementation and effectiveness of the Reform Agenda for BiH for the period 2015 – 2018.
The first Report of Independent Monitoring, under the name „State of the Nation 1“ was presented to the public and the media in Sarajevo (on 26 January 2016) and in Banja Luka (on 04 February 2016).With the promotion of the first Report the campaign „Job to the People“ was launched, with which CCI wish to make a contribution to the implementation and effectiveness of reforms in BiH. On that occasion, a website (www.posaonarodu.ba) was presented, which contains the documents of the Reform Agenda, as well as the regulations and reports of the Employment Bureaus, the information related to the implementation of the measures in Action Plans and the latest job vacancy announcements throughout BiH.
The first Report of the independent monitoring of implementation and effectiveness of the Reform Agenda for BiH for the period 2015-2018 covers the period September-December 2015. The monitoring methodology relies on three main methodological approaches: the use of quantitative methods to evaluate the implementation of action plans at all levels, the use of secondary data on measuring the economic, business, social and other characteristics of the country, while the third approach is based on associating the selected indicators with the chapters-fields of the Reform Agenda. A total of 70 indicators for proving the effectiveness of the measures from action plans for the period 2010-2015 were monitored.
Two public debates addressing the ways of reaching better understanding of the planned and expected reforms and a better focus on effective and measureable outcomes, through an open dialogue, were organized in Mostar and in Tuzla, by CCI. On that occasion, the results of the report „State of the Nation“ were presented to all interested actors of that area (NGOs, representatives of the government, international organizations and the media). The public debates were an opportunity to spread the network of advocators of necessary reforms at all government levels.
The project „Reforms and Job“ has been implemented by CCI with the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in BiH since September 2015. Its main goal is to contribute to increasing the responsibility of BH authorities for the reduction of unemployment through an active participation in initiating, passing, implementation and monitoring of key economic reforms and the new public policies contained in the Reform Agenda for BiH 2015-2018. The project will offer periodical progress reports on the implementation of the Reform Agenda, the effects of reformed public policies on the standard of living and will at the same time initiate and advocate a number of activities that will contribute towards creation of new jobs.
'State of the Nation' in lical language can be downloaded here.
'I elect for the first time' is an activity that will be implemented by the Coalition for Free and Fair Elections 'Pod Lupom' in order to motivate the young people who exercise their voting right for the first time, to turn out for 2016 October Elections and vote.
The Coalition has been working intensively on the preparation of the activities within „I elect for the first time!“ for the pupils of final grades of secondary schools; these activities should be completed by mid-May 2016. The goal of this activity, through 672 educational workshops that last 45 minutes each, held throughout BiH, is to educate the young voters on the election process and to motivate them to turn out for elections.
These activities are carried out within the project BASE –
Building Accountability and Systems in the Elections, supported by the
Delegation of the European Commission in BiH.
CCI intensified the advocacy processes in FBiH cantons that have not yet passed the Adult Education Acts. Of a total of 10 cantons, the above-mentioned law has not been adopted in only 4. More...
Herzegovina-Neretva, Central Bosnia, Posavina Cantons
and Canton 10 are the only ones in BiH that have not adopted the Adult
Education Acts yet. In addition to the advocacy activities on adopting this
law, CCI has been working in parallel on the activities of designing and
promotion of by-laws (rulebooks) that should help application of adult
education laws in other FBiH cantons, in which this law was adopted in 2015.
These are the following cantons: Sarajevo, Tuzla, Bosnia-Podrinje and
West-Herzegovina Cantons.
At the end of 2015, the Register of Organizers of Adult Education was
also formed in Canton Sarajevo. CCI believe that this law is of great
importance for BiH as it contributes to increasing the elementary, functional
and IT literacy, as well as to regulating, in a system way, the field of adult
education and enabling the lifelong learning, all of which can positively
impact the reduction of unemployment and poverty.
These activities are carried out within the project “Education and Job” implemented by CCI in partnership with the Agency for Local Development Initiatives (ALDI) and supported by the Delegation of the European Union in BiH. The project aims at improving the workers’ rights as well as the workforce mobility by establishing a legal framework for adult education at the level of cantons, entities and Brcko District. The project will focus on passing a coherent and harmonized legal framework throughout the country, which should address education, re-qualification and additional qualification of adults, with a goal to improve the situation in the labour market, i.e. to reduce unemployment and improve the position of socially marginalized groups. More information about the project and the campaign Education and Job is available from www.uciradi.ba.
The round table under the name „Effects of the Law – an Unknown Term in BiH“ was held on 15 December 2015 in Sarajevo in the organization of CCI.
Along
with the open discussion by more than 40 representatives of BiH social and
political life, the results were presented, obtained during an exhaustive
analysis of the present legislative solutions and practices in our
country. The main message of the event
was that it was necessary to improve the efficiency of the legislative process
and at the same time ensure higher effectiveness of the adopted laws. It was
also pointed out that the practice whereby the most important laws are passed
under an urgent procedure and without the inclusion of the expert public was
not in accordance with the European standards. The present representatives of
the authorities agreed with the proposed recommendations, while in 2016 CCI
will continue advocating their adoption.
These acctivities are part of the Civil Society Sustainability Project, which is funded by USAID.
The first cycle of seminars intended for the participants of the social dialogue in BiH has been held. As part of the project ‘Strengthening of awareness and capacities of social partners in BiH in the area of social dialogue and collective bargaining’, which was supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in BiH,
the first cycle of two-day seminars was held which aimed at improving the knowledge and skills of social dialogue of interested parties-trade unions and employers from both entities.
Two-day seminars, under the name “Social Dialogue:
What is its Purpose and How is it Run?” were held in Sarajevo on 23/24 February
and in Teslic on 26/27 February. The seminars were attended by more than 40
representatives of trade unions, employers and competent institutions from both
entities. The participants of the seminars were made familiar with the basics
of the social dialogue, the great experience of the social dialogue in the
Kingdom of the Netherlands as well as with the obstacles and opportunities for
a successful social dialogue in BiH. Expert training was delivered by the
experts of the Dutch Organization of Employers and the Dutch Association of
Trade Unions. The attendees concluded that the knowledge and the skills for running
the dialogue, solving conflicts and building necessary consensus on trust
required certain knowledge and skills. Therefore, they supported this type of
education and training.
A one-year project “‘Strengthening of awareness and capacities of social partners in BiH in
area of social dialogue and collective bargaining’, was launched by CCI, with
the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in December 2015.
The goal of the project is to make a contribution toward strengthening the
imperative of the social dialogue. The reforms of labour legislation and other
reforms that are inevitably awaiting BH society in the near future will also imply
a change of the paradigm of representation of collective interests, the content
and the form of the dialogue of social partners, and permanent dynamics of the
dialogue as a mechanism of harmonization of different interests.
In parallel to the aforementioned, CCI has been also
preparing a comparative analysis of policies and practice of social dialogue
and collective bargaining in EU countries compared to BiH, with a package of
recommendations as to how to treat the social dialogue, at the level of
legislation and practice, as an advantage and an asset and by no means as
something opposite.
'Enhancing the Public Sector Integrity: Depoliticization for the Rule of Law' – is a new project of CCI. The project is supported by the Delegation of the European Union in BiH. It aims at contributing to the rule of law and good governance in BiH, and advocates professionalism and integrity of the public sector, especially the procedures of appointment and employment in the public sector.
An analysis of the legislative governing the field of appointment and employment in the public sector at all governance levels is currently being developed. The analysis also covers the standard practices during the appointment and employment as well as the candidates' complaints to second-instance bodies and courts. Over 50 legal acts were collected that will be processed through the analysis, in order to reach the concrete recommendations the adoption of which should improve the present legal framework by reducing the area for manipulation during job vacancies announcements and significantly improve the prospects for competent persons to get a job in the public sector without political connections.
In
parallel to the development of the analysis, CCI is working on developing a
unique database of all management and leadership positions within the public
sector and on duration of the terms of office of the persons holding these
offices.
'The System of State Aid in BiH – Law vs. Practice' is a new publication in the edition of CCI.
According to the study, at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with regards to the state aid there are no obligations that were set up, no analyses are developed of the effects of granted state aid, and no evaluation of the effects of the state aid regulations was done.
The analyses of effects of granted state aid are monitored only sporadically and at lower government levels, while their potential for making the decisions aimed at purposeful directing of state interventions has been used only partly. On the other hand, the analysis showed some positive facts, such as an indicator that the overall allocations made by Bosnia and Herzegovina for state aid since the beginning of application of the law have decreased and are relatively low compared to the GDP, the same indicators of the surrounding countries and the European average. Even the structure of the state aid is relatively good compared to the surrounding countries; however, this is only due to the fact that the allocations for sector state aid and restructuring of the sector of coal and transport have practically not started yet. The allocations for horizontal state aid are too low compared to the needs, and, as it was determined, insufficiently directed to fostering the research and development, protection of the environment, training and employment and development of small and medium-sized enterprises.
This publication can be downloaded here, in the local language only.
Strengthening of Inter-Municipal Cooperation and Capacities of Local Self-Government Units in the Southwest of the Republic of Srpska for Accession to the European and Other Funds is new CCI project.
Within this project, CCI will, together with the partners – Municipalities of Mrkonjic Grad, Ribnik, Sipovo, Istocni Drvar and Jezero, establish an inter-municipal development team. Members of this team will go through an intensive training in order to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills for development of project proposals, and thereby increase the opportunities for these communities to access EU donor funds as well as other donors. Within these activities the members of the inter-municipal development team will develop one project proposal of interest of all communities, and will submit it to donors for consideration. CCI, with its resources, is available to the inter-municipal team for any kind of assistance, consultation, and promotion of the project in media.
Project goal is:
To contribute toward sustainable development of local self-government units in the southwest of the Republic of Srpska and diversification of their funding sources and strengthening of partnership of civil and public sectors
Kontakti
cci@ccibh.org