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SARAJEVO, January 15 (FENA) - The EU Delegation to Bosnia and Herzegovina has started contracting projects under the EUR 71 million worth financial package, following the signing of the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) 2018 Programme by BiH authorities in December last year.
The funds will be used, among others, for the agriculture, energy efficiency and justice sectors. Bosnia and Herzegovina is currently also utilising funds implemented from IPA 2013 to IPA 2017, with an overall commitment exceeding EUR 350 million, EU Delegation stated.
They also added that in 2019, the EU contracted nearly EUR 81 million and paid out over EUR 64 million, significantly above the targets set in the beginning of the year. The EU expects that the financial performance of BiH will further increase in 2020, both for the contracting of the new actions as well as payments for the ongoing projects.
As for IPA 2019 and 2020, in November last year the EU Member States approved these annual programmes of a combined worth of approximately EUR 170 million. These funds will target the following sectors: public administration reform, public finance management, justice and transitional justice, home affairs, support to parliaments in the EU accession process, energy, transport, environment, trade and education, employment and social policies. This allows for the start of the preparation of BiH for the next Financial Perspective 2021 – 2027.
BiH is also the biggest beneficiary of the Regional IPA for transport in the Western Balkans. Some EUR 215 million of grant co-financing is used for acceleration of the construction of motorway on Corridor Vc, with several segments under construction (Zenica sjever, Rudanka – Johovac, Počitelj – Zvirovići) or about to be started (Tarčin – Ivan). Gradiška Bridge is under construction and Svilaj Bridge is to be completed during upcoming months, it is said in a statement from the EU Delegation to BiH.
(FENA) A. B.
