EU funded projects in BiH

Sectors
EU Acquis chapters	Environment
Programme Funding Year	2008
Value	€99,885
Periods of implementation	2010
Locations	BANJA LUKA, SARAJEVO-CENTAR, HADŽIĆI, ILIDŽA, ILIJAŠ, SARAJEVO-NOVI GRAD, NOVO SARAJEVO, SARAJEVO-STARI GRAD, TRNOVO (FBiH), VOGOŠĆA, KAKANJ, ZENICA

Environment is a high ranking issue on the European agenda and increasingly so with regard to its interventions in BiH. The BiH and the European Unions' strategic documents stress the importance of proper implementation of the environmental acquis. While the official responsibility for compliance lies with the BiH authorities, the NGO community has a very important role to complement the work of the administration by signalling infractions, collecting of information, coordinating the pilot project and educating citizens about their rights and obligations. BiH environmental NGOs have developed considerably over the past decade. Further support to their capacity building and know how improvements has been recognised as valuable for their becoming full and complementary partners of the administration in implementation of the environmental acquis. The European Union has recognised those needs, and provided series of development projects to contribute to encouragement of the partnership between governmental and non-governmental sectors with the aim of effective implementation of EU standards in environment in BiH. In that respect, this European Union project aimed at increasing the capacity of NGOs and the level of public participation in environmental policy making, promoting good governance through the sound protection of environmental rights. In addition, our goal was strengthening the capacity of civil society organisations in BiH to take on a “watchdog” role, i.e. monitor public policies and legislation in the areas of environmental rights and violation of a right to a clean environment.

With the European Union funding, this project had significant impact on increase of the capacity of NGOs and the level of public participation in environmental policy making as well as on promotion of good governance through the sound protection of environmental rights. We achieved an increased public awareness of environmental rights in BiH, which contributes to improvements of the legislative and institutional framework by realising public opinion surveys, fact finding missions and subsequent inter-sectoral common work and dialogue both with stakeholders and NGOs on better addressing needs and constraints of the BiH society in the area of environmental protection and rights. In that way, a multi-stakeholder dialogue in environmental policy is generated, resulting in growing consensus and greater influence of civil society organisations. We also helped improving monitoring mechanisms and early warning systems by capacity building of civil society organisations via trainings, workshops and seminars and thus enabled better use of environmental rights but also achieved better awareness of citizens via media and public campaigns carried out. By such actions, we contributed to better overall cooperation between civil society organisations and governments in BiH by generated multi-stakeholder dialogue in environmental policy, resulting in growing consensus and more prominent role of civil society in dialogue with governments.