Initiative for monitoring EU integration: It is time for a fundamental step forward in reforms on the way to BiH’s membership in the EU

The initiative for monitoring EU integration, as the only coalition of non-governmental organizations that monitors the process of negotiations and accession to the EU, welcomes the decision to open negotiations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Union. After the formal opening of negotiations, it is time for BiH institutions to return to serious work on fulfilling the necessary conditions referred to by the European Council. This is only the first step in the long process of approaching EU standards, and it is necessary to engage all the available capacities this country has. In order for Bosnia and Herzegovina to make real progress in this sense, it is necessary to implement all the foreseen steps and approach the participatory process of integration into the EU community.

The annual reports of this Initiative, as well as several domestic and international analyses, showed that the BiH authorities did not systematically approach the fulfillment of the conditions, and that some of the reform laws represented only “cosmetic changes”, and were most often adopted in urgent procedures – without the opportunity for serious involvement of civil society and professional public. The country continues to face the following challenges:

1. Lack of progress in the implementation of reforms: despite the decision to open negotiations, we are still, as a society, faced with minimal progress in the implementation of key reforms required for membership. Bosnia and Herzegovina still has to adopt a series of reforms, including the Law on Courts, creating conditions for the functioning of the coordination mechanism, and preparing and adopting a program for the application of the EU acquis;
2. Strong international pressure and geopolitical circumstances as a basis for bringing the country closer to full integration with the EU: the members of the Initiative require the decision-makers to communicate more clearly about the significance of the geopolitical circumstances that arose after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the impact of these changes on European soil on the opening of negotiations with BiH. Also, the influence of international mediators, as well as the presence of the European Union in Bosnia and Herzegovina, played a primary role in the adoption of part of the reforms and the decision to open negotiations;
3. The process of adopting laws and making decisions, which were key to the opening of negotiations, were characterized by a lack of transparency through the implementation of urgent procedures for adopting laws without adequate consultations with the civil sector and the public: we expect that the processes will be more transparent and that through the process of European integration citizens’ trust in the institutions of our country will be restored.

Taking into account the aforementioned challenges, the decision to open negotiations represents an opportunity to return the process of adoption of reforms to the institutions, while giving a more significant role to experts and civil society, with the aim of ensuring the best benefits for the citizens of BiH.

The European integration monitoring initiative calls on decision-makers to take responsibility for the implementation of reforms and ensure the inclusion of civil society and citizens in decision-making processes. Also, the members of the Initiative remind the decision-makers that only after the adoption and implementation of the reforms will follow the screening process (analysis of compliance of the legislation of the candidate country with European regulations), which will give Bosnia and Herzegovina a clear picture of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s perspective and the country’s approach to the European Union.

The initiative for monitoring European integration will continue to monitor the next steps and will insist on the quality of legal solutions that will create a democratic and functional system.