1. Bosna i Hercegovina Agencija za statistiku Bosne i Hercegovine Bosnia and Herzegovina Agency for Statistics of Bosnia and Herzegovina Donor coordination in Bosnia and Herzegovina Jasna Samardzic, International Relations and European Integration Department MGSC/2012/08

2. Donor assistance and aid coordination in Bosnia and Herzegovina(BiH) “ Strengthening the Efficiency of the International Aid Coordination System in BiH“ approved by Council of Ministers of BiH in 2006 BH Ministry of Finance and Treasury officially endorsed the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness in December 2009 Donor Coordination Forum in BiH established by 17 major donors as a semiformal platform for information exchange in December 2005 MGSC /2012/08 2

3. Background Core statistical system of BiH made of three statistical institutions BiH is a potential candidate country for the EU membership Statistics should make significant progress and technical assistance provided by donors is highly appreciated BH statistics have received substantial external assistance The most significant assistance provided by: EU, Sida, Italian Government/ISTAT, IMF, WB, DFID, Government of Japan, EFTA, OECD, UNDP, UNFPA, and others 3 MGSC /2012/08

4. Donor coordination in statistics (1) BH Law on Statistics drafted by international experts, adopted by the BH Parliament in 2004 “Article 8: The Agency has the mandate to: (a) perform international representation and co-operation with organisations and other bodies and carry out Bosnia and Herzegovina’s international responsibilities in the field of statistics; (b) establish and maintain contacts with the donor community and propose distribution of the donations for the Agency and Entity Institutes in accordance with the donor’s expressed preferences or if there are no preferences in accordance with the Statistical Programme” 4 MGSC /2012/08

5. Donor coordination in statistics (2) Period of donor driven support Before establishment of the Agency Statistics of BiH(BHAS) in 1998, the donors initiated individual projects with no mutual coordination (1996 -1997) After the establishment - the Management Board with an international coordinator responsible for contacts with donors (1998 -2004) EC Delegation and OHR (international community) had a coordinating role for statistics The Donors’ meetings in 1998 and 1999 organised by EC Delegation - 5 MGSC /2012/08

6. Donor coordination in statistics (3) 2004 - Director General replaced the Management Board 2003 - The first Global Assessment in BiH 2004 - The first strategic document for BH statistics, Statistical Programme 2005 – 2008, adopted 2005 - International Cooperation and European Integration Department started with work MGSC /2012/086

7. Donor coordination in statistics (4) From 2005 onwards The statistical institutions gradually taking over the leading role Projects implemented in BiH programmed and prepared by statistical institutions For several years, the Agency organised donor meetings to exchange information and aligned the plans (but bilateral meetings of beneficiaries and donors more efficient) The Agency works closely with EU Delegation to BiH; the cooperation significantly improved recently EUD to BiH - focal point for all donors MGSC /2012/087

8. Coordination with donors at the present time(1) The implementation of projects in BiH more expensive, difficult and slower than in the other countries in the region The Agency is coordinator and official proponent and negotiator for all projects All projects implemented in three institutions The entity institutions involved from the very beginning of the planning process and actively participating in drafting project proposals Projects are complementary activities but very important ones for all statistical institutions in BiH 8 MGSC /2012/08

9. Coordination with donors at the present time(2) All activities in BiH planned in line with the strategic documents The latest adopted Multi-annual Statistical Programme 2009- 2012 The latest Adapted Global Assessment/AGA conducted in 2011 New strategic document, based on the recommendations from AGA report, in preparation Strategic priorities of official statistics defined by Euro-Atlantic integrations requirements for BiH Population Census in 2013 - big challenge and great opportunity (both for statistics and donors) 9 MGSC /2012/08

10. The issues for consideration The number of donors in BiH significantly diminished and that reflects on statistics as well Plans for future Internal issues Cooperation within the statistical system Political influence still strong Common priorities for all three institutions to be agreed Inter–agency cooperation and information flow in the country 10 MGSC /2012/08

11. Conclusions (1) Project implementation is strong cohesive factor for BiH statistics Technical assistances provide the best opportunities for learning and harmonisation with EU standards Development of BH statistics will depend on external technical assistance for a long time Large needs of the BH statistics – low risk for overlapping between the different projects’ activities 11 MGSC /2012/08

12. Conclusions (2) The number of donors significantly reduced as well as available funds Main internal issue for BH statistics is how to improve professional cooperation within the system and diminish political influence on statistical issues Beneficiaries and donors remain to be jointly responsible for donor coordination in BiH and harmonisation of future activities. 12 MGSC /2012/08

13. Thank you for your attention! jasna.samardzic@bhas.ba MGSC /2012/0813