LocationsBetter management of public companies
Improved services for citizens
December 12, 2022
The Public Enterprise Integrity Project (PEIP), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in BiH in cooperation with the Government of Sarajevo Canton and with the support of the Government of the Kingdom of Norway, is a positive example for other levels of government and for other parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it was concluded at the Project’s closing conference held in Sarajevo.
The goal of the PEIP project, launched at the initiative of the Sarajevo Canton Government in July 2019, was to contribute to the strengthening of good governance and integrity in seven public companies and public institutions in SC.
Edin Forto, Prime Minister of the Sarajevo Canton Government, who was also at the helm of the cantonal cabinet when the PEIP project was initiated, said at the launch of the conference that many public enterprises and institutions had been found in a neglected state and that there was a need for a systematic approach for reorganization and modernization of their work.
"At the time, we agreed with the Embassy of Norway and UNDP on a project to strengthen integrity. We took seven companies and institutions where great strides were made in the meantime. We brought in the world's best consulting and audit firms that analyzed the work, on the basis of which we improved the corporate management, public procurement and general management of these companies," Prime Minister Forto said, citing KJP ZOI '84 Olympic Centre Sarajevo as a particularly successful example of a company in which the project was implemented.
Forto emphasized that the project aimed to raise the management of state-owned companies to a higher level, so that they are treated as market-oriented companies, and not as companies at the service of politics.
"For the most part, we succeeded in that," the Prime Minister said at the conference organized together with Transparency International in BiH. It was attended by, in addition to the partners in the project, representatives of governments, relevant ministries and public companies and institutions, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), representatives of countries from the region, the international community, donors, the non-governmental sector and the media.
This is a model that should be replicated in other parts of the country as well.Edin Forto, Prime Minister of the Sarajevo Canton Government
Siri Andersen, Deputy Head of the Mission of the Norwegian Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, said that the Embassy supported the project because they saw that the Sarajevo Canton Government had strong will for the reform of public enterprises.
"From our experience in Norway, the management of public companies is a complex thing, it requires a lot of support, and as a starting point you need to know what the situation is, you need the facts. I am happy that the Embassy of Norway was able to support the project, first through having a review of the seven companies in Sarajevo Canton, to see what the status is and what needs to be done further. This could be an example for other parts of BiH", Andersen said.
I think it is also positive how public companies have embraced this process.Siri Andersen, Deputy Head of the Mission of the Norwegian Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Steliana Nedera, Resident Representative of UNDP in Bosnia and Herzegovina, expressed her satisfaction with the project supported by the UNDP’s global partner Norway.
"This project was very new for Bosnia and Herzegovina. Definitely, this experience is useful for others,” Nedera said.
Having comprehensive analysis of the companies and giving them thorough recommendations about improvement is a new step.Steliana Nedera, Resident Representative of UNDP in Bosnia and Herzegovina
She added that satisfactory public services and their improvement are an important priority for UNDP, and that it was working on this through various projects throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The beneficiaries of the project were KJKP Rad, KJP ZOI '84 Olympic Center Sarajevo, KJKP Toplane-Sarajevo, JU Health Center KS, JU Employment Service KS, JU Student Center Sarajevo and JU Cantonal Institute for the Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage Sarajevo.
