How the Budget Reserve for Emergency and Unforeseen Situations Was Spent Last Year

The Budget Law for Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and International Obligations of Bosnia and Herzegovina for 2015 planned reserve funds in the amount of 6,216,000 BAM, and an additional 500,000 BAM was later added, writes Patria.

Almost all of it was spent, according to the Information that will be presented on July 19 to the members of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Incidentally, reserve funds have not been used in a transparent and publicly accountable manner for years. For the most part, they are not used for their intended purpose at all, but are allocated to individuals on various grounds, as well as to lower-level government institutions that are already financed from some budget, auditors state. From the funds intended for natural disasters, emergency and unforeseen situations, tens of millions have been distributed for things already provided for in the budget.

Out of a total of 6,721,000 BAM, 6,099,400 BAM refers to planned funds from the current reserve based on decisions of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and 621,600 BAM refers to the plan for emergency use of the current reserve, based on individual decisions of members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina and his deputies.

Of the planned 6,721,000 BAM in current reserve funds, a total of 6,711,501 BAM was approved during 2015. Of the total approved 6,711,501 BAM, the amount of 6,098,050 BAM refers to approved funds made available to budget users by Decisions of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the amount of 613,451 BAM refers to emergency use of the current reserve based on individual decisions of members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina and his deputies.

The Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina spent 4,986,634 BAM of budget reserves, Bakir Izetbegović (Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina) 124,319 BAM, Dragan Čović (Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina) 123,208 BAM, Mladen Ivanić (Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina) 124,144 BAM, Denis Zvizdić, Prime Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina 77,500 BAM, Vjekoslav Bevanda, Deputy Prime Minister 82,000 BAM, Mirko Šarović, Deputy Prime Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina 82,280 BAM.

- Within the remaining funds in the amount of 1,120,914 BAM, there are reserved funds totaling 900,000 BAM. The reservations relate to reservations for the integration program in the amount of 500,000 BAM and reservations for co-financing the European Youth Olympic Winter Festival 2017 (EYOWF) in the amount of 400,000 BAM – states the Information on the distribution and use of current budget reserve funds.