Bosnia and Herzegovina is working to improve its strategic planning in the judicial context

With the aim of joining the EU Member States, Bosnia and Herzegovina needs a new strategy to reform the country’s justice sector. This work is being carried out with the support of Spain and France through the EU4Justice project, which aims to bring Bosnia and Herzegovina’s justice system into line with European standards.

This work is being done by strengthening the rule of law, in particular by improving the independence, quality, effectiveness, accountability and efficiency of the justice sector and its performance in the fight against corruption and organised crime.

EU4Justice organised the seminar ‘Fundamentals of strategic planning in the judicial context’, which was given by Spanish experts from the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) and the Ministry of Justice. The seminar aimed at specialists from the Ministry of Justice, the Secretariat of the High Judicial Council and the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina aims to provide an introduction to strategic planning, exploration of the environment, making a proper SWOT analysis, i.e. knowing the weaknesses, threats, strengths and opportunities of the institution. In addition, allocation, budgeting, logical framework and key indicators have also been part of this seminar, always with the aim of bringing Bosnia and Herzegovina closer to the accession to the European Union.

‘The Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina is competent for strategic planning in the justice sector, drafting of proposals for laws and by-laws and other regulations at the state level, efficient administrative functioning of judicial bodies in Bosnia and Herzegovina and cooperation with international criminal courts. We are dedicated to enhancing the strategic planning skills of judicial managers in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of judicial administration. By organising this seminar, we have achieved this,’ said Toni Šantić, Head of the Sector for Strategic Planning and Aid Coordination at the Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

For his part, Jorge Obach, FIIAPP expert and head of one of the components of the EU4Justice project concluded: ‘During the seminar, we talked a lot about the implementation of the strategy, as well as its adjustment and revision, stakeholder involvement and technological innovation in the strategic planning of the judiciary. The project will assist the Ministry of Justice in analysing and mapping relevant strategic decisions of the BiH justice sector, as well as related obligations of institutions prescribed by laws or international agreements, in order to streamline, harmonise and integrate monitoring processes and the preparation of evaluation reports’.