US gives 10 million dollars for reconstruction of schools and small and medium enterprises!

The United States (US) will allocate an additional 10 million dollars to assist areas affected by floods and landslides, said today the US Chargé d'Affaires Nicholas Hill after a meeting of USAID representatives with the Minister of Finance of Bosnia and Herzegovina Nikola Špirić and the Governor of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina Kemal Kozarić.

Hill emphasized that this is an additional 10 million dollars in aid for restoration and reconstruction, after the US donated 2.5 million dollars during the emergency aid period.

- In the past few weeks, we have seen how much work has been done to repair the damage, in which the Armed Forces particularly distinguished themselves. In this phase of reconstruction, we will invest an additional 10 million dollars for recovery. USAID will implement a program through which we will spend this money. We will work closely with partners in the international community and with local authorities – said Hill.

According to his words, they will work most with local authorities, and therefore transparency in spending the money is of great importance.

- The amount of aid that will arrive in the coming period will be significant, but it will not be enough to meet all the needs of the areas affected by the floods. For this country to overcome this, it will need to work on improving the climate for investors – said Hill.

The Director of USAID in Bosnia and Herzegovina, David Barth, said that most of the funds come from the Trust Fund jointly held by USAID, the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Ministry of Finance of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which, as he said, they saved for such situations.

- I contacted Minister Špirić and Governor Kozarić, and they did not hesitate for a second and said they would do everything they could to make this happen – said Barth, as reported by the Bosnian news agency Patria.

Minister Špirić thanked for this aid, emphasizing that the US is always there when Bosnia and Herzegovina is in trouble. He added that the money will be spent on the reconstruction of schools, kindergartens, and for assistance to small and medium enterprises, in order to preserve jobs.