Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments Adopted to Speed Up EU Integration Process

(Patria) - The Conference of Speakers of Parliaments in Bosnia and Herzegovina was held today in Mostar, where the Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments to speed up the European integration process was adopted. A Joint Statement was signed on this occasion, in which the highest representatives of the BiH parliaments expressed their commitment and readiness to take measures for the implementation of the Plan of Priorities and the realization of the 14 key priorities from the European Commission's Opinion on BiH's application for membership in the European Union (EU).

The conference was held within the framework of the project "Support to EU Parliaments in Bosnia and Herzegovina in European Integration Affairs", funded by the EU, and attended by members of the collegiums of both houses of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina (PSBiH), presidents and deputy presidents of both houses of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, and the Assembly of Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In addition to the BiH parliamentary leaders, the meeting was also attended by the Head of the EU Delegation and EU Special Representative in BiH, Johann Sattler, as well as representatives of the National Assembly of Hungary, the Parliament of Austria, and the Croatian Parliament, who are implementing the project.

In her opening address to the participants, the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the PSBiH, Borjana Krišto, thanked the European Union, the European Union Delegation to BiH, as well as the EU member states implementing the Twinning project for their support, and emphasized that this meeting represents a significant step in confirming the role that parliaments play in the European integration process.
According to Speaker Krišto, through this project, the EU not only provides technical assistance to the parliaments in BiH but also enables an important form of institutional cooperation between the legislative institutions of BiH and the legislative institutions of EU member states.

Emphasizing how she considers it extremely significant that parliaments at different levels of government – state, entity, and cantonal – are included in the project, Speaker Krišto assessed that this Twinning project ensures better harmonization of all levels of government for the purpose of BiH's successful integration into the EU.

Highlighting the role of parliaments in BiH as key in BiH's European integration process in his address, the Head of the EU Delegation and EU Special Representative in BiH, Johann Sattler, underlined that parliaments have a huge role in implementing the EU acquis communautaire. According to Ambassador Sattler, this project represents an excellent tool for transferring best practices from the parliaments of EU member states.

Ambassador Sattler welcomed the progress BiH has made in the EU integration process, and warned about the slowness in adopting reform laws that fulfill the priorities from the European Commission's Opinion, particularly the Law on Public Procurement, the Law on Conflict of Interest, and the Law on the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council. In this regard, Ambassador Sattler called on the highest officials of the BiH parliaments to use this year, 2021, to implement the necessary reforms, and promised that the EU would continue to provide full support and assistance to BiH.

In his address to the participants, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Peoples of the PSBiH, Dr. Dragan Čović, also assessed that such gatherings are a very clear proof of the commitment and dedication of all levels of government in BiH to BiH's European integration process. According to Dr. Čović's assessment, the priority in the first half of this year is the adoption of amendments to the Election Law of BiH, which would ensure equality and legitimate representation of the three constituent peoples at all levels of government, which, as he said, would eliminate numerous problems and obstacles on BiH's European path.

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the PSBiH, Dr. Denis Zvizdić, highlighted the recovery of the economy and the healthcare system from the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic (Covid 19) as one of the priorities for this year. He also emphasized the importance of completing the local elections and implementing the election results, especially in Mostar and Srebrenica.

Speaking about the priorities on BiH's European path, Dr. Zvizdić expressed his belief that BiH can fulfill nine key priorities from the European Commission's Opinion by May of this year, thereby ensuring the credibility of the request for candidate status. In this regard, Dr. Zvizdić appealed to the representatives of EU member states to support BiH's request for candidate status, which, as he said, would send a strong message of hope and optimism for a better future to all citizens of BiH.

The participants of the meeting were also addressed by the ambassadors of Hungary, Austria, and Croatia, the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Parliament of the Federation of BiH, Mirsad Zaimović, the Speaker of the House of Peoples of the Parliament of the Federation of BiH, Tomislav Martinović, as well as the Vice-President of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, Denis Šulić.

The participants of the meeting discussed the Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments to speed up the European integration process, presented by the project leader from an EU member state, Zoltán Horváth.

During the meeting, it was assessed that the Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments is a strategic document aimed at resolving the most urgent tasks so that parliaments in BiH, as key actors, can provide strategic guidance in the European integration process of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and make a full contribution to the realization of the 14 priorities from the European Commission's Opinion on BiH's application for EU membership.

The Plan of Priorities aims to contribute to the timely and effective preparation of parliaments in BiH to face upcoming challenges, especially in the context of gaining candidate country status and opening BiH's accession negotiations with the EU. The Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments focuses on the following key areas of parliamentary functioning:

● Ensuring the adequate functioning of the Parliamentary Committee for Stabilization and Association between the PSBiH and the European Parliament; ● Ensuring the adequate functioning of the cooperation mechanism for parliaments in BiH in the context of European integration, to enable continuous political and administrative coordination and information exchange through the relaunch and strengthening of cooperation at the level of the Conference of Speakers, the Parliamentary Forum for European Integration, cooperation between sectoral committees, cooperation at the administrative level, and other forms of ad hoc forums; ● Ensuring effective oversight of government activities in the area of European integration; ● Improving the parliamentary legislative harmonization procedure; ● Enhancing the role of parliaments in raising public awareness about the European integration process; ● Strengthening cooperation with civil society organizations and other stakeholders interested in topics related to the European integration process; ● Improving the general administrative framework so that parliaments in BiH can effectively perform tasks in the European integration process.

The highest representatives of the BiH parliaments adopted and signed a Joint Statement in which they agreed on the text of the Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments to speed up the European integration process, and expressed their commitment to taking measures for the implementation of the Plan of Priorities, considering this document of great importance on the path of Bosnia and Herzegovina's European integration. By signing the Joint Statement, the highest representatives of the BiH parliaments committed to submitting the Plan of Priorities to their respective Houses or Assemblies by the end of February 2021, in accordance with the procedure prescribed by the internal documents of each of the BiH parliaments.

Support in implementing the Plan of Priorities for BiH Parliaments will be provided to parliamentary representatives through the project "Support to EU Parliaments in Bosnia and Herzegovina in European Integration Affairs", funded by the EU.