Bosnia and Herzegovina is known for the old bridge in Mostar, Stari Most, for its many rocky mosques and beautiful nature. Capital: Sarajevo Official language: Bosnian Currency: Bosnian mark Passport and visa: Finnish citizens are not required to have a visa. The passport must be valid for at least three months after leaving the country. Time difference to Finland: -1
Agriculture
Almost half of Bosnia’s area consists of cultivated or grazing land and almost every fifth inhabitant is employed in agriculture. It is mainly conducted on small and often inefficient farms, largely for own use.
CountryAAH: Comprehensive import regulations of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Covers import prohibitions and special documentation requirements for a list of prohibited items.
The conditions are good for far more extensive agriculture. The climate is favorable, and both land and labor costs are low for a country in Europe. For Bosnia and Herzegovina defense and foreign policy, please check relationshipsplus.
In the south, near the Mediterranean, tobacco and citrus crops are common. Otherwise, mainly other fruits, vegetables, cereals and potatoes are grown.
Animal husbandry is quite extensive and is dominated by sheep, pigs, cows and poultry. Not least, milk production has increased in recent years.
Almost half the country is covered by forest, and forestry accounts for a considerable portion of export earnings.
FACTS – AGRICULTURE
Agriculture’s share of GDP
6.0 percent (2018)
Percentage of land used for agriculture
43.1 percent (2016)
Abbreviationfinder.org: Offers how the 3-letter acronym of BIH stands for the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina in geography.
2017
December
No budget for 2018 in the Federation
December 29
Disagreement between the governing parties in one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s entities, the Federation, means that no budget can be voted on for 2018. This means that for three months only basic expenses such as pensions and salaries can be paid but nothing else and no new reforms can be taken. In the second entity, Republika Srpska, the budget for 2018 has been adopted.
Excise taxes open the way for credit
December 15
After a 15-hour debate in Parliament, a law is passed to introduce excise taxes on biofuels and tolls, among other things. The controversial taxes – the opposition claims to have major consequences for businesses and transport as well as ordinary citizens – were a demand from the IMF and the EBRD, which now pays out a total of around one billion euros in deductible credits, for example for various infrastructure projects.
November
Sentenced war criminal commits suicide
November 29th
Bosnian Croat war exterminator Slobodan Praljak commits suicide in the courtroom when his imprisonment is set in a higher instance by the War Criminal Tribunal in The Hague (ICTY). The 72-year-old Praljak empties a poison cup when sentenced. In 2013, Praljak was sentenced to 20 years in prison for war crimes when Mostar was taken in by Croatian forces, which, among other things, destroyed the city’s famous old bridge. He was one of six high-ranking Bosnian Croat ex-politicians and environmentalists who were sentenced by the tribunal but appealed against his judgments.
Life time for Mladić
November 22
In its final major verdict before it ceases operations at the turn of the year, ICTY, the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia, the former Bosnian commander Ratko Mladić, sentenced to life imprisonment for genocide and crimes against humanity. The 74-year-old Mladić is found guilty of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide when nearly 8,000 Muslim men and boys were murdered, for the persecution and extermination of Bosnians and Croats throughout Bosnia, for terrorizing the people of Sarajevo by shooting from snipers, and for possessing taken people from the UN peacekeeping force hostage. However, he is acquitted of genocide in six other Bosnian communities in 1992. Mladić will appeal the verdict.
August
Bridge noise with Croatia
August 31st
Prime Minister Andrej Plenković explains that Croatia intends to continue the construction of the Pelješac Bridge, which will facilitate relations between the country’s southern and northern parts. This is in spite of objections from Bosnia-Herzegovina, such as the day before sending a letter of protest to both Croatia and the EU, claiming that first border issues between the countries must first be resolved. Thus, new life is brought to life in what has been a matter of dispute between them ever since the bridge construction began in 2007. Bosnia has always maintained that the Pelješac bridge would make it difficult for ships to enter Neum, the country’s only port.
July
The government coalition is bursting
July 21st
After many months of internal turmoil, the second largest Bosnian party, SBB, leaves the government coalition that has been ruling in the federal parliament since 2014 and also in most of the ten cantons in the federation. This is mainly due to disagreement between the party leaders of the two Bosnian parties in the coalition: SBB’s Fahrudin Radončić and Bakir Izetbegović, leader of the largest Bosnian party, the SDA. For the time being, the coalitions continue to govern but now without SBB and in minority. The next parliamentary elections will only be held in autumn 2018.
Court decisions jeopardize political order
July 13
The Constitutional Court partly accepts a complaint made about how the choice of the Federation House of the People, the House of the People, goes to. Parliament is now tasked with changing the electoral law – unless this happens in time before the October 2018 elections, no government can be formed either in the Federation or at the national level.
February
The ICJ ruling is appealed
February 17th
The Bosnian representative in the presidency, Bakir Izetbegović, asks the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to re-issue its 2007 ruling when Serbia was released from direct responsibility for the Srebrenica genocide. The request comes just before the time limit for the appeal expires. Bosnian Serbs representative in the Presidential Council Mladen Ivanić protests and says that a “serious crisis” has arisen. However, the ICJ does not raise the target again.
January
National Day celebration in Republika Srpska
January 9
In spite of a ban from the Constitutional Court, the Bosnian Serbs celebrate their “national day” during the great pomp and parade in Banja Luka. Particular attention is paid to the participation of soldiers from the Bosnian army (see also September 26, 2016). The US will soon impose sanctions on Republican Srpska President Milorad Dodik, who will freeze entry bans and any assets in the US.
