How is money allocated for tourism projects in Sarajevo: It's not all about a good idea, is there something in politics?

The Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board issued a public call in early March this year, divided into several lots, one of which referred to co-financing projects that will enrich Sarajevo's tourist offer, including cultural, artistic, stage and entertainment content.

The final list includes 37 projects with a total value of 694,093.02 KM. A review of the approved projects highlights several that received large sums of money, unlike the majority of approved projects. The largest individual amount was received by the Ilidža Municipality for the project "Muzičko ljeto-Ilidža 2024" (Musical Summer Ilidža 2024), amounting to 80,000 KM.

The company Eventrio received 65,000 KM for the project "Sarajevo street food market meets Euro ’24." This is a project that has already been held several times in Sarajevo, both in summer and winter periods. Projects "Garden of dreams festival 2024" organized by Ideas business lab and "Eternal flame 2024/SFF – closing night of SFF" organized by Solution lab each received 50,000 KM.

For the project "Sarajevo Matinee 2024," 42,400 KM was allocated. This is a project behind which stands Alen Čustović and the company Matinee d.o.o. Sarajevo matinees have been held since 2020 at various outdoor locations, gathering fans of electronic music. In 2023, 10 matinees were held, attracting a large number of visitors.

A new matinee is scheduled for June 1 this year at the Bijela Tabija site. Tickets for these events cost between 20 and 25 KM, and on the day of the event, the price is 35 KM.

According to the public call, the applicant's participation per project must be 30 percent. The deadline for completing the projects is from May to October, within the framework of the Sarajevo Summer Fest and when a large number of tourists are staying in Sarajevo.

What is interesting about the projects "Sarajevo Matinee" and "Sarajevo street food market" is that they actually have the same organizers, as the initiators of these projects themselves have stated in the media.
These two projects received money not only from the Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board but also from the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Sarajevo Canton, headed by Kenan Magoda, a cadre of the SDP. The head of the Tourist Board is Haris Fazlagić, also a cadre of the SDP BiH.

Thus, in 2023, the Ministry of Culture and Sports gave 100,000 KM to the company Eventrio for the "Street food market" project, and 18,000 KM to the company Matinee, according to data published in the transfer register. Entry to all Street Food Market events in 2023 was free.

According to data from the register of business entities, the owners of the company Matinee d.o.o. are Alen and Aida Čustović. Alen Čustović is, according to information available to Patria, related to Alma Hadžić, the wife of former SDP member Damir Hadžić, who is today accused of managing processes from the shadows in the Novi Grad SDP. The spokesperson for the Street Food Festival is precisely Alma Hadžić, and her statements from last year's festival held at Wilson's Promenade can be found.

The Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board in 2023 was not as generous, allocating for the same two projects (Street food festival and Sarajevo Matinee) 10,000 KM and 5,000 KM, respectively. Before Fazlagić, the head of the Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board was Magoda. The enormous increase in allocated funds this year for the same projects that were previously financed with much less money is a question for those who decided on it. The projects were also supported by the City of Sarajevo and the municipalities.

Sources from the Novi Grad SDP claim that Magoda enjoys the support of Damir Hadžić, especially when he was to be appointed Minister of Culture and Sports.

According to data from the Financial and Information Agency (FIA), the company Matinee has recorded revenue growth since 2021. Total revenue in 2021 was 34,367 KM with no profit, in 2022 it was 179,494 KM, and in 2023 it was 347,963 KM, with a profit of 94,817 KM. The average number of employees according to FIA data is one.

Some of the projects that received non-refundable funds from the Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board have already been realized, while others will be realized within the planned period until October.

When it comes to the allocated amounts, it seems that projects involving "food, drink and music" fared best, while some others received significantly smaller amounts. For organizing a children's festival, 8,500 KM was allocated, for the International Folklore Festival "Bjelašničke staze" (Bjelašnica Trails), 3,000 KM was allocated, and for Sarajevo Traditional Fest, 3,200 KM.

See the list of allocated funds from the Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board below.

(A.Vrabac)