Press Releases
Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Holds Its 134th Session
02/22/2018
Vijeće ministara Bosne i Hercegovine
The Council of Ministers of BIH defined Proposal Basics for accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Protocol from 1978 to the Convention on the Contract for International Carriage of Goods by Road, concluded in Geneva in 1956.
The accession to the Convention, initiated by the Foreign Trade Chamber of BIH, will secure legal certainty to transporters from BIH doing international carriage of cargo in road traffic.
The Protocol defines the ways of calculation of indemnity for a full or partial loss of goods, i.e. it defines the upper level of indemnity per kilograms of gross weight. The indemnity is calculated on the basis of value of goods in time and at place of receiving the goods for transport.
The Ministry of Communications and Transport will provide the Proposal Basics to the Presidency of BIH for further procedure, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs was proposed as the BIH signatory of the Instrument of Ratification.
FULFILLED OBLIGATION FROM REFORM AGENDA ACTION PLAN: PUBLISHED REGISTRIES OF NON-TAXABLE PAYMENTS
Registers of non-taxable payments at all four authority levels in Bosnia and Herzegovina were established and published, thus an obligation from the Reform Agenda Action Plan was fulfilled and conditions created for their decrease and harmonisation.
The Registry of non-taxable receivables, collected by the BIH Institutions was adopted in 2016 and published at the Ministry of Finance and Treasury web site, and it contains total 203 non-taxable receivables, which legal and natural persons pay to the BIH Institutions, in form of administrative fees and other levies.
In the Federation of BIH, there are 198 different levies and fees, of which at least 95 are paid at the Federal level, 77 at Cantonal level at average, while 26 are paid at municipal level. In Republika Srpska the approximate number of levies paid on various bases is 286, the Brčko District of BIH indicated 177 non-taxable payments.
This was provided in Information of the Public Administration Reform Coordinator’s Office concerning a decrease of para-fiscal levies and their harmonisation throughout BIH, which was adopted by the Council of Ministers and will be sent to the House of Representatives of the BIH Parliamentarian Assembly, in compliance to a conclusion by the House from one of its earlier sessions.
So the first step was completed in mapping non-taxable receivables, and it will be followed by activities for their decrease and harmonisation in BIH.
BIH AND EU STRENGTHEN THEIR BORDER COOPERATION
The Council of Ministers defined proposal basics for negotiations on an Agreement on Status of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Union in Activities by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a view at institutionalisation and fostering of relations.
It would improve relations between the European Union and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the area of border cooperation, including harmonisation of operative plans, simplification and acceleration of joint interventions at borders, as well as cooperation with other agencies and bodies of the EU.
The Proposal Basics will be provided to the BIH Presidency for further procedure, and the Minister of Security was proposed for the BIH signatory.
ITA WILL DEAL WITH SEIZED VEHICLES IN COMPLIANCE WITH EXISTING REGULATIONS
The Indirect Taxation Administration of BIH will comply with the existing legal regulations in dealing with the issue of motor vehicles, seized under certified court decision, i.e. taken away in customs administrative procedure, which were waived by their owners for the favour of the state, and which do not fulfil conditions for putting them into market.
The subject regulations deal with the treatment of goods seized by customs, and which do not fulfil conditions for being marketed. The issue will be reported to the Council of Ministers of BIH.
According to Information by the Indirect Taxation Administration of BIH, it is about more than 2,000 vehicles earlier taken away under certified court decisions, and which were older than seven and 10 years. These vehicles do not fulfil conditions for car licencing and sale, and they are in a warehouse, the rental cost for which amounts to KM 48, 000.00.
CONTINUATION OF TALKS ON DISTRIBUTION OF DIPLOMATIC-CONSULAR PROPERTY OF EY SFRY
The Council of Ministers of BIH tasked the authorised representative of BIH in the Joint Committee for Implementation of Annex B of the Agreement on Succession Issues of Ex-SFRY to continue activities at realisation of obligations stemming from both the Annex and conclusions from the first part of the 19th meeting of the Joint Committee for Distribution of Diplomatic-Consular Property of Ex-SFRY, held in Belgrade last December.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs that the joint sales of property in New York, Bonn, Bern and Tokyo, which the committee launched earlier, were given a high priority in talks agenda, due to numerous activities to be taken to the end of realisation of sales and distribution of funds collected.
The meeting supported, among other things, the work of an Expert Group for distribution of pieces of art. Views were exchanged on the current state of affairs in terms of distribution of property in Brasilia, New Delhi and Moscow, and it was concluded that the talks on that property should continue after obtaining additional information.
Due to voluminous agenda and complexity of topics discussed, the 19th meeting will be continued, as planned, in March 2018 in Belgrade.
RIVER DRINA BASIC MANAGEMENT PROJECT STRENGTHENS COOPERATION OF BIH, SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO
The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations will report to the Council of Ministers, at least once a year, about the realisation and implementation process of the Drina River Basin Management Project in the Western Balkans, which strengthens cooperation of BIH, Serbia and Montenegro.
The realisation of the project started last March, and should be finalised in 2020. It is intended to increase the living standard of inhabitants around the Drina River basin by establishment of sustainable solutions to be implemented by effective institutions. Investments will be realised through small grants programme and pilot-projects, with participation of hydro-meteorological institutes, agencies for waters, municipalities and local communities, especially communities affected by floods and droughts.
This USD 8.4 million worth programme was financed in equal shares from the Special fund for Climate Change and Global Fund for Environmental Protection. The funds were allocated proportionally to the Drina River basin to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro.
Bosnia and Herzegovina should get USD 3,375,270.00, and the proceeds will go to the Ministry of foreign trade and Economic Relations and relevant institutions of Republika Srpska and the Federation of BIH.
PLANNED ACTIVITIES UNDER WASTE WATERS IN SARAJEVO PROJECT COMPLETED
The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted Information of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations on the Sarajevo Waste Waters Project, IBRD-784-BA, completed on May 31, 2017.
The amount of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development loan is EUR 23.6 million, and the end beneficiary is the Public Utility “Water Pipeline and Sewage” Sarajevo. Withdrawn was EUR 20,639,574.17 or 87.6 per cent of total loan proceeds. The project is financed also by domestic contribution by the Sarajevo Canton, which contributed by KM 1,810,500.00, while about EUR 12.3 million grant was secured from the IPA funds.
All planned activities under the Project were successfully implemented, and about 50 contracts signed. All financial audit reports for 2010-2016 are positive and provided to the World Bank and Ministry of Finance and Treasury of BIH.
The aim of the project is to improve the living conditions to citizens covered by the Utility, and in communities downstream of the Rivers of Miljacka and Bosna, which presumes the improvement of effectiveness of waste waters collection network in the Sarajevo Canton, high quality treatment and purification of waste waters and decrease of pollution in rivers.
BIH ANSWERED TO THE LANZAROTE COMMITTEE QUESTIONNAIRE
The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted compiled answers of Bosnia and Herzegovina at a Thematic Questionnaire for the second monitoring cycle on the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse, facilitated by use of ICT, and which will be provided to the Lanzarote Committee by the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees.
This way, Bosnia and Herzegovina fulfils its international obligation from the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse.
Questions from the Lanzarote Questionnaire were provided for answering to all-level authorities in BIH, Ombudsmen for Human Rights in BIH, international and non-government organisations, and universities in our country. The answers received endorsement by the Governments of the Federation of BIH, Republika Srpska and Brčko District of BIH.
The answers concern the prevention of sexual violence and child abuse by way of ITC, protection of children and relevant international cooperation.
VOTE BY CITIZENS OF ITALY IN BIH
The Council of Ministers of BIH granted its consent for organising voting by citizens of the Republic of Italy in the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regarding the parliamentarian elections in the Republic of Italy, to be held on March 4, 2018.
The balloting will be via mail, and the terminal deadline for the receipt of ballot by Italian citizens living in BIH is March 1, 2018. The ballots will be taken by the Consular Office of the Embassy of the Republic of Italy.
(end)