Council of Ministers Holds Its 56th Session

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined unanimously a Proposal Law on Amendments of the Law on Indirect Taxation Procedure, with a purpose to create more favourable conditions for business operation by business entities and for making-up of indirect taxation liabilities. 

The Amendment Law penalty interests for outstanding indirect tax obligations are decreased on daily basis from current 0.06% to 0.04%, simultaneously with a decrease of subsequent burden from 10% of owed amount to 5% of the owed amount, and all this with an aim at disburdening business-making and providing further incentive.

The Amendment Law proposes the publication in media of data on debtors and their debt, since data on due unpaid indirect tax will no longer be held as classified information if published in public media or web page, but yet without supplied ID tax number for legal persons and single registration number for natural persons.

This way, a level of tax payers’ accountability is intended to get increased and tax discipline tightened.

The Indirect Taxation Administration will provide the Proposal Law to the Parliamentarian Assembly of BIH.

The Council of Ministers of BIH postponed for next week its reflection on a Draft Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Law on Single Registration Number.

Upon a proposal of the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees, the Council of Ministers of  BIH took a decision to allocate  KM 100,000.00 to the Organisation Board for Marking the 19^th Anniversary of Tragedy in Srebrenica – “UN Safe Zone“.

Upon a proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, the Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision to amend customs tariffs for year 2013 for the purpose of incentive-giving to domestic production and for budgetary savings.

The Amendment annuls tariff quotas for frozen beef without bones, subcutaneous pork fat and dry or smoked pork meat for which earlier total quota was 2,6000 tonnes. At the same time, a quota is decreased for mechanically used meat, pieces without bones and poultry offal from 2,258 to 1,000 tonnes.

 The Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision to allocate Budget funds for the purpose of solving Roma issues in the areas of employment, housing and health care for 2013 in total amount of KM 2,950,000.

According to the decision, the contribution to the housing of Roma is planned to amount to KM 710,000.00 and health care assistance would be KM 210,000.00, while up-dating on needs of the Roma population will be supported with KM 30,000.00.

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted Information of the Ministry of Finance and Treasury on Public Debt in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which points out that as at December 31, 2012, BIH’s public debt stood at the level of KM 10.4 billion, out of which KM 7.1 billion or 68 per cent of foreign debt and about KM 3.3 billion or 31.85% of internal debt.

The total amount of public debt is divided between the Federation of BIH with 57.74 per cent, Republika Srpska with 41.50 per cent, Brčko District with 0.39 per cent and BIH Institutions with 0.27 per cent. In total amount of the internal debt, the Federation of BIH participates 46.83 per cent, Republika Srpska with 51.97 per cent and Brčko District with 1.20 per cent.

The major part of foreign debt, 70 per cent of it, is owed to international financial institutions.

The Ministry of Finance and Treasury will provide this information to the Parliamentarian Assembly of BIH.

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined a Proposal Agreement between the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ministry of Rural Development of Hungary on Cooperation in Agriculture, and adopted a report on negotiations.

Except from data exchange on the current developments in agriculture, the Agreement provides for a transfer of Hungarian experience in production of wheat and vegetables, cattle raising, organic production, processing of agricultural products and marketing, including the implementation of legislation, standards and technical regulations of the EU, which pertain to the food industry.

The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations will provide the Proposal Agreement and the accompanying report to the BIH Presidency, and Minister Mirko Šarović was proposed as the BH signatory.

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined s Proposal Protocol on Amendments and Supplements to a Memorandum of Understanding  on cooperation in anti-corruption activities though an SEE Anti-corruption initiative, as proposed by the Ministry of Security with a view at improvement of cooperation between counties-signatories and more effective anti-corruption activities of competent bodies.

Under the Protocol, the Stability Pact Anti-Corruption Initiative (SPAI) grows into a regional anti-corruption initiative (RAI).

The Ministry of Security will provide the Proposal Protocol to the BIH Presidency for further procedure, and Minister of Justice Briša Čolak was proposed for the BIH signatory.

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined Proposal Basics for negotiations on a Protocol on Cooperation in Search for Missing Persons between the Council of Ministers and Government of the Republic of Serbia.

The two states committed to mutual cooperation for the purpose facilitation of handover of remains of deceased identified persons, transport and other forms of assistance to families of missing persons.

The Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees will provide the Proposal Basic to the BIH Presidency for further procedure, and Minister Damir Ljubić was proposed as the signatory.

The Council of Ministers of BIH defied proposal basics for accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina to a regional Convention on Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Preferential Rules of Origin of Goods.

The BIH’s accession to the Convention would substantially increase  diagonal cumulating of goods with origin to be exported from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The diagonal cumulating system of origins brings about a favour to affiliate business entities and states, since it enables a producer to include in its products materials from other affiliate state with which it has concluded a free trade agreement, so that countries could export them as their own products under preferential conditions.

The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations will provide the Proposal basics to the BIH Presidency for further procedure.

The Council of Ministers of BIH accepted an Initiative of the Ministry of Finance and Treasury and designated a delegation for negotiations on a Financing Contract between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Investment Bank and Public Enterprise Power Utility of Bosnia and Herzegovina Distribution Department.

The loan is EUR 15 million worth and it is intended for electricity distribution network maintenance, modernisation and extension project. The loan term is 25 years, including a 4 year grace period.

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted Information of the Ministry of Finance and Treasury on taking over the diplomatic-consular property of ex-SFRY, allocated to BIH based on the Agreement on Succession Issues.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is tasked to compile all needed documentation referring to a building complex in Ankara once belonging to ex-SFRY, especially cadastre evidence for the belonging parcel. BIH got 8,899 m2 parcel in addition to Embassy building of 617m2 size at 47 Paris Caddesi, Kavaklidere.

Authorised negotiator in the Joint Committee for Annex B dr. Zlatko Lagumdžija got consent to make a bilateral agreement with the Republic of Serbia representatives on a just demarcation at the ex-SFRY parcel in Ankara.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BIH got an authorisation to hire a lawyer office and competent geodetic authority for an effective demarcation and registration.

The Ministry of Finance and Treasury and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are tasked to accelerate their activities so to speed-up the handover and registration processes of ex-SFRY diplomatic-consular property that now belongs to BIH.

The Council of Ministers of BIH fully adopted the State IPA package for 2013, established by the European Commission and provided to the National IPA Coordinator on June ¸14, 2013. The package contains 12 projects of total value of EUR 87.09 million. The Directorate for European Integrations will report to the adoption of the package to the European Commission.

Upon a proposal of the Ministry of Finance and Treasury, the Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision on the level of vacation bonus in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina for year 2014, in compliance with the Law on Salaries and Reimbursements in the BIH Institutions.

The bonus level, after its decrease, for employees with 4, 00 coefficient would be KM 300, and for employees with coefficient above 4, 00 the bonus will be paid in amount of KM 1.

Upon a request by the Presidency of BIH, the Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision to allocate KM 400.000.00 from the current reserves of 2013 BIH Institutions Budget for the procurement of security and related equipment for the BIH Presidency building.

Separate decisions were made to allocate KM 120,000.00form the current reserves to the Secretariat-General for the procurement of a new device for protection of service and users of e-Government system, KM 700,000.00 to the State Investigation and protection Agency for employment of 20 cadets of junior inspector rank, and KM 162.720,00 to the Service for Foreigners’ Affairs for salaries and reimbursements.

Upon a proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, the Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision to allocate KM 400,000.00 from the 2013 Budget reserves for an emergency funding of monitoring of brucellosis and other animal diseases.

Also, separate decisions were made to allocate KM 184,000.00 from the 2013 Budget reserves to the Parliamentarian Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina for employment of eight staff members in 2013, KM 24,123.00 to the Central Election Commission for the costs fo accommodation, separation allowances and transport allowances for its two members; KM 98,000.00 to the BIH Attorney’s Office for three cars, KM 36,483.00 from the current reserves to the Institute for Missing Persons for the implementation of a court award, KM 8,500.00  to the Centre for Information and Recognition of University Diplomas for employment of one staff member, and KM 6347,500.00 to the BIH Prosecutor’s Office for employment of 14 staff members in 2013, out of which 13 prosecutors and one registrar.

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