Sarajevo Canton Secured Funds for Minimum Wages of 39 Employees of the National and University Library of BiH

(Patria) - Prime Minister of Sarajevo Canton (KS) Nihad Uk and Minister of Science, Higher Education and Youth Dušanka Bošković visited the National and University Library (NUB) of BiH, where they discussed its long-standing unresolved legal and financial status, as well as the implementation of the legal obligation of KS within the framework of the lex specialis law.

In accordance with the Law on Co-financing of Institutions of Importance for Bosnia and Herzegovina, which came into force in Sarajevo Canton in May 2024, NUB BiH was for the first time covered by a special (lex specialis) law, as it had not previously been systematically included in the budget framework.

Through this legal solution, the Ministry of Science, Higher Education and Youth provides funds for minimum wages and salary supplements for 39 employees of this institution.

These are funds that enable exclusively the payment of minimum wages, thereby ensuring the basic existential and professional stability of the employees, but not the permanent financial sustainability of the institution.

Speaking about the significance of this legal solution, Uk emphasized that it represents the first concrete institutional step towards stabilizing the Library's operations.

- Sarajevo Canton has taken on part of the responsibility and, for the first time through a special law, secured funds for minimum wages and salary supplements for 39 employees of NUB BiH.

We believe that the preservation of this institution is a matter of public interest. However, a long-term solution must be systemic and at the state level, as it is an institution of national importance.

This is not a matter of one institution - it is a matter of the continuity of education, science, and culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Uk stated.

He emphasized that Sarajevo Canton is currently the only canton in Bosnia and Herzegovina that financially supports this state institution, and that this support represents an act of institutional responsibility towards the state, its culture, and its educational system.

Minister Dušanka Bošković further highlighted the importance of the Library for the academic community and the development of science in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

- The funds we allocate for wages and salary supplements for employees are a clear message that KS stands by this institution. Without a strong NUB BiH, there is no quality higher education, nor the development of scientific research work. We will continue to work on strengthening its capacities and stability - Bošković stated.

Director of NUB BiH Adisa Žero emphasized that this is the first time after many years that the institution has been covered by a systemic legal solution.

- NUB BiH has not been covered by any systemic legal solution that would guarantee budget funding for years. With this lex specialis law, a historic step has been made, as funds for the minimum wages of our 39 employees have been secured for the first time.

We need a permanent and systemic solution at the state level so that we can stably plan development and retain the expert staff who preserve the written heritage of our country - Žero stated.

During the remainder of the visit, long-term challenges facing the Library were also discussed, particularly in the context of the unresolved issue of founding rights and permanent budget funding at the state level.

The visit concluded with a commitment to continued cooperation and joint advocacy for a permanent, systemic solution that will long-term regulate the status and funding of NUB BiH in the interest of all citizens.

NUB BiH, founded in 1945, is the central parent library in the country with a dual function - a national (state) and university library for all licensed universities in BiH.

Its special collections were declared a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2020.

The Library collects, professionally processes, preserves, and makes available the entire publishing output of BiH, publishes the national bibliography, organizes and coordinates the library-information system in the country, and performs the function of state agencies for ISBN, ISSN, and ISMN.

It also manages the system of assigning DOI identifiers for scientific and professional publications, thereby ensuring the international recognition and visibility of Bosnia and Herzegovina's scientific production.