The specialized site offers information on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, a declaration adopted in November 2020 at the Western Balkans Summit in Sofia. In addition to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), this declaration was signed by five other countries: Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Serbia.
The signatories have committed to pursuing a clean energy transition and reducing the negative impact of using fossil fuels in the economy– production and consumption, taxation, and social benefits. The countries would thus make a contribution to the ultimate goal – making Europe the first “climate neutral” continent by 2050.
In addition to basic information on the Green Agenda, the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIN) has published the main guidelines for implementing this document in five key areas: climate change (decarbonization, energy, mobility), circular economy (waste, recycling, sustainable production, efficient resource use), biodiversity (protection and restoration of ecosystems), de-pollution of air, water and soil and the sustainability of rural areas.
On the website you can read and download the original and translated documents related to the Green Agenda – Sofia Declaration on the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, Guidelines for the Implementation of the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans, and other. In addition, on the website, you can find CIN databases and research stories on issues closely related to the five key areas of the Green Agenda.
The declaration was signed on behalf of BiH by Foreign Minister, Bisera Turković. This ministry provided CIN with a copy of the Declaration and Guidelines for the Implementation of the Green Agenda in English. The questions of the journalists about the undertaken obligations, the implementation plan, deadlines, financial resources, and key institutions responsible for the implementation of the obligations were forwarded to the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH.
It has been more than a month since but we have not yet received any specific answers from this ministry. They provided only general information, saying that all levels of government will participate in the implementation, without specifying which institutions will lead the process at the state level. They provided no information about the roles of entities, Brčko District, cantons, cities, and municipalities, and have not answered what has been done so far. In response, they stated that the document is legally binding for BiH, but does not envisage any sanctions for delays or non-implementation.
In the coming period, CIN will update the site with information related to the implementation of this declaration in BiH.
