The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Bosnia and Herzegovina organized a workshop to mark the beginning of the project "First Biennial Transparency Report (BTR1) and combined Fifth National Communication and the Second Biennial Updated Report (NC5/BTR2)" under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

As a signatory to the UNFCCC, Bosnia and Herzegovina is obliged to periodically submit National Communication Reports, with the First Biennial Transparency Report due by the end of the year. The project will support Bosnia and Herzegovina in preparing and submitting these reports, as well as actively contributing to enhancing its technical and institutional capacities in fulfilling its international obligations in the field of climate change.

Over the next four years, UNDP will implement this project in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction, and Ecology of Republika Srpska, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism of BiH Federation, and the Department of Spatial Planning and Property-Legal Affairs of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Bosnia and Herzegovina is facing with serious challenges of climate change, making this project a key strategy for integrating climate considerations into its development objectives. The aim is to identify data, improve transparency, and strengthen coordination among governmental bodies at all levels in this field. The reports will provide an overview of updated activities and progress in combating the impacts of climate change. They will also analyze vulnerabilities and possible adaptation measures by sectors, and define strategies for adapting to the climate change consequences. Furthermore, they will include information on models for raising environmental awareness, education, systematic research, and technology transfer in the context of mitigating climate change.

The project will draw on international experiences and build on the results of related projects, as well as previous reporting processes in this field, also supported by UNDP. One of the activities to be carried out in this regard is the enhancement of the domestic system for Monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of climate change data, which Bosnia and Herzegovina established under the project "Capacity Building Initiative for Transparency" (CBIT), implemented by UNDP and financed by GEF, which is also a requirement under the UNFCCC.

Finally, the project will explore the connections between climate change, gender equality, and socioeconomic factors, emphasizing the importance of women's participation in decision-making processes.