Bosnia and Herzegovina
Prior to the early 1990s, the region presently known as West Herzegovina Canton was one of the poorest areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), while today it is one of the richest. It has an important agricultural sector, and it has embarked upon an active investment promotion strategy, focusing on the processing industry, trade and civil engineering (HERAG, 2019[1]). West Herzegovina Canton has the sixth largest population among the cantons composing Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) (); its primary and secondary school cohort is also the sixth largest. Correspondingly, the canton also comes sixth in terms of the size of its network of primary and secondary schools. The canton’s Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports governs education policy. The ministry has around 25 members of staff, five of which cover education. This profile examines the context and features of West Herzegovina Canton’s evaluation and assessment system for education and highlights policy recommendations that can help strengthen this system to improve teaching and learning.
Education has a key role to play in supporting COVID-19 recovery efforts in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and helping the country to achieve more inclusive and sustainable growth. In recent years, BiH administrative units have taken steps to improve their various education systems by integrating the Common Core Curriculum Based on Learning Outcomes (CCC) and by participating in international assessments of student learning, like the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). However, BiH continues to face sizeable educational challenges. While the country achieves good levels of participation in schooling, data from PISA reveal that the average learning outcomes remain lower than in EU countries and large shares of students leave school without mastering basic competences. Moreover, the country’s decentralised governance structure and limited co-operation among government partners creates significant challenges for setting strategic objectives, policy coherence, and ensuring the effective delivery of public services.
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) has expanded access to school education in recent years and international assessments reveal that student achievement is similar to other Western Balkan economies. However, international data also shows that a large share of students in BiH leave school without mastering basic competences and overall performance lags behind the average learning outcomes achieved in OECD and EU countries. The complex governance structure in BiH and limited collaboration across government partners, as well as a range of capacity constraints and the inefficient allocation of resources hinders collective efforts to improve teaching and learning in the country.
International assessments reveal that student achievement in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is similar to other Western Balkan economies but large shares of students continue to leave school without mastering basic competences. The country also has limited data on teaching and learning, making it difficult to take evidence-informed policy decisions. These challenges are hindered by capacity and resource constraints that prevent several competent education authorities from developing strategic plans and implementing education reforms. This chapter reviews some of the contextual features of education in BiH and highlights how evaluation and assessment can help achieve higher learning standards for all students.
Central Bosnia Canton (CBC) has a GDP per capita that is similar to the average of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) (). The canton’s traditional economic sectors include agriculture and trade; there are some deposits of natural resources that support industry (BHAS, 2021[1]). In terms of surface, CBC is the fifth largest of the ten cantons in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) and with 80.2 inhabitants per km², the population density is slightly below that of FBiH average (89.1 inhabitants per km²). The canton’s Ministry of Education, Science, Youth, Culture and Sports has filled 30 out of 40 of its staff positions, creating capacity constraints for governing education policy from the pre‑school to higher education level, as well as policies related to culture and sports. There is also a material and financial affairs section, which has nine employees in total. This profile examines the context and features of Central Bosnia Canton’s evaluation and assessment system for education and highlights policy recommendations that can help strengthen this system to improve teaching and learning.
Sarajevo Canton contains the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Sarajevo City, and has the highest population density and strongest economy of all jurisdictions in the country (). Together, the city and canton of Sarajevo generated nearly 33% of the total GDP of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) in 2017 (Sarajevo Canton, 2019[1]). Sarajevo Canton has important tourism, food processing, manufacturing and information technology sectors, and hosts a number of large international companies. Until recently, Sarajevo Canton had a single ministry with responsibilities for education policy. In spring 2021, however, these responsibilities were split between the new Ministry of Education and Upbringing, which governs pre‑school, school and adult education and a separate Ministry for Higher Education, Science and Youth, which is responsible for higher education, as well as science and youth policy areas (MoES, n.d.[2]; MoE, n.d.[3]). This profile examines the context and features of Sarajevo Canton’s evaluation and assessment system for education and highlights policy recommendations that can help strengthen this system to improve teaching and learning.
Bosnia and Herzegovina can legally issue the following five types of rulings within the scope of the transparency framework: (i) cross-border unilateral APAs and any other cross-border unilateral tax rulings (such as an advance tax ruling) covering transfer pricing or the application of transfer pricing principles; (ii) rulings providing for unilateral downward adjustments; (iii) permanent establishment rulings; and (iv) related party conduit rulings. It is noted that the Tax Administration in the Bosnia and Herzegovina entity of Republic of Srpska is the only authority issuing rulings in scope of the FHTP work.
This report is Bosnia and Herzegovina’s first annual peer review report. Consistent with the agreed methodology this report covers: (i) the domestic legal and administrative framework, (ii) the exchange of information framework as well as (iii) the appropriate use of CbC reports.
Bosnia and Herzegovina has made incremental progress since the 2012 assessment, but its business environment continues to be cumbersome and it still lags behind its regional neighbours in small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) policy development. The weak co-ordination between public institutions at state and entity levels not only leads to the creation of disconnected policies but also impedes their implementation. More positively, a new public procurement law was adopted in 2014. The signing of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the European Union established access to EU public procurement markets. The country has made efforts to promote entrepreneurial skills with the introduction of a nationwide entrepreneurial learning strategy, and introducing entrepreneurial skills into school curricula. Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to face severe issues with bureaucratic procedures such as company registration and business licensing, which currently have to be performed twice, once in each respective entity, creating serious market distortions within the country. SMEs and start-ups would benefit from a strategic approach to innovation and financial instruments to promote it. Access to finance remains a major obstacle for SME development. These challenges, and others, highlight the growing need for increased policy co-ordination between the state and entities and the need to introduce a nationwide SME development strategy.
Bosnia and Herzegovina entered a recession in 2009. In order to mitigate the effects of the global crisis, the government has sought support from the International Monetary Fund. On 8 July 2009, the executive board of the International Monetary Fund approved a 36-Month Stand-By Arrangement amounting to EUR 1.1 billion for Bosnia and Herzegovina. In line with many economies in South-East Europe (SEE), the crisis exposed Bosnia and Herzegovina’s dependence on high domestic demand fuelled by rapid credit growth and external financing.
The Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina explicitly prohibits all direct or indirect discrimination, whether on the grounds of sex, race, language, politics, religion or national or social origin. The country ratified the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in September 2003.
L’examen thématique de la politique de l’éducation de la Bosnie-Herzégovine fait le point sur le système éducatif et les efforts de reforme en cours dans ce pays. Le rapport commence par fournir des données générales et démographiques, situer le contexte linguistique, géographique et historique, et présenter la situation politique, économique et du marché du travail ; par ailleurs, il donne une description de la structure et du cadre juridique. Il traite de l’ensemble du système éducatif, autrement dit, aussi bien de l’enseignement général et supérieur que de la formation professionnelle et de la formation tout au long de la vie, mais porte plus particulièrement sur l’accueil et l’éducation de la petite enfance, les enseignants et leur formation, les programmes, la gestion et l’administration. L’équité devant l’accès, le niveau de formation atteint et les résultats obtenus sont des questions essentielles et les aspects liés à l’appartenance ethnique et aux minorités ainsi que les enfants ayant des besoins éducatifs particuliers bénéficient d’une attention spéciale. Le rapport examine aussi la décentralisation et le financement de l’éducation, la qualité et l’évaluation dans ce secteur, la formation initiale et en cours d’emploi des enseignant, les conditions de travail et les rémunérations du personnel enseignants, le rôle des inspecteurs scolaires, l’offre d’ouvrages scolaires, ainsi que les matériels et ressources en général. Cet ouvrage décrit les problèmes qui se posent et les obstacles rencontrés à tous les niveaux du système éducatif et formule des recommandations à l’intention des décideurs publics, des personnes de terrain et des donneurs...
The Thematic Review of Education Policy of Bosnia Herzegovina describes the current status of the education system and reform efforts underway. The country is introduced by general and demographic data; language, the geographic and historical context; the political, economic and the labour market situation; it also describes the structure and the legal framework. The whole education system is covered, from general education to vocational education, from higher education to lifelong learning, but focusing on early childhood and care, teachers and teacher training, curriculum and governance and administration. Equity in access, attainment and achievement are central issues, and special consideration is given to ethnic and minority questions and education for children with special needs. Attention is paid to decentralisation and financing of education; to quality, assessment and evaluation in education; to preservice and in-service teacher training; working conditions and teacher salaries, the role of school inspectors; textbook provision and material and resources in general. The report describes issues and barriers at all levels of the education system and gives recommendations for policy makers, practitioners and donors...