New work plans and programs endorsed by the BiH-UN Joint Steering Committee

The Steering Committee, which is co-chaired by the Vice-chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers, Mr. Vjekoslav Bevanda and the United Nations Resident Coordinator in BiH, Dr. Ingrid Macdonald, was established to oversee the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF), which was adopted by the BiH Council of Ministers in December 2020 for a period of five years (2021-2025).

The 2021-2025 UNSDCF is a statement of mutual commitment to the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina to work on four priorities to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in BiH and the 2030 Agenda in the country. These include work on Sustainable, resilient, and inclusive growth; Quality, accessible and inclusive education, health and social protection; People-centered governance and rule of law; and Citizen and community engagement for social cohesion – goals which were mutually developed.

The joint session was attended by the Minister of Civil Affairs, Ms. Ankica Gudeljević, on behalf of the Vice-chairman - the Minister of Finance and Treasury, the Federation Minister of Tourism and Environment, the Republika Srpska Minister of European Integration and International Cooperation, the Office of the Brčko District of BiH Coordinator at BiH Council of Ministers, as well as the Resident Representatives of UNDP, UNICEF, UNESCO and UNFPA.

The meeting reviewed activities carried out during the last year, during which the United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina delivered USD121 million against these priorities. This included support to over 20,000 small businesses and entrepreneurs; 343,722 children, parents & caregivers with psychosocial services; support to over 300 youth-led initiatives in 67 communities; planting of 17,000 trees in 34 locations - absorbing 20kt of CO2 in their lifetime, and delivery of 10.4 million PPE pieces to 100 health institutions. The results of those programmes are detailed in the 2021 Results Report, which was also presented to the members of the Joint Steering Committee.

The Joint Steering Committee endorsed the proposal that the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) join the implementation of the Cooperation Framework.

Highlighting that this year marks 30 years of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s membership at the United Nations, the members of the Joint Committee confirmed their mutual responsibility for the Cooperation Framework as part of the country’s commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).