A training for representatives of Cantonal Ministries for Environmental Protection was held in Sarajevo on 21 December 2021 at the HOLLYWOOD Hotel. The aim of the training was to present the new Law on Environmental Protection, Rulebooks and Regulations that were developed and adopted in 2021, for the purpose of familiarizing Cantonal Ministries with their provisions and their appropriate application within the respective Cantonal territories and jurisdictions. The training also served as a platform for discussion and gathering of information and opinions by the Cantonal Ministries.
The training was officially opened by the Ms. Lejla Šuman, REC Director, who expressed her appreciation to the Government of Sweden for the enormous support it has provided to the relevant institutions and projects, as well as the civil society organizations in BiH engaged in environmental protection activities.
Following the opening statement, Mr. Stjepan Matić, Assistant Minister for Environmental Permits, Environmental Impact Assessment, Registry and Clean Technologies at the FBiH Ministry of Environment and Tourism, addressed the audience, noting on the fact that the FBiH legal framework has not been amended for many years.
Together with REC, we have continuously been working on the enormously important NEST project, funded by Sweden, that serves to provide technical assistance to the Ministry in amending the legislation. Great efforts have been made to increase transparency of our work, as we are deeply convinced that full data transparency in the process of obtaining all permits is the most important step forward in regulating the environmental protection area.
Following the introductory addresses, the experts who were involved in drafting the regulation and other representatives of the Federal Ministry of Environment and Tourism from the relevant sectors had their presentations.
After the presentations, a discussion was opened in which the participants presented in detail their experiences and opinions that will significantly contribute to the quality of drafting new bylaws that are to be prepared in the following period.
The training ended with a lot of new faces, new challenges and with greater pride after having received the comment “This is called a true reform of environmental legislation”.
Our activities will continue, and we express our thankfulness to the Swedish Government for their support.