Strengthening Capacities in BiH for EU Integration – Support in Preparation for Gaining EU Candidacy Status (EU Questionnaire)
Background
From February to March 2016 Foreign Policy Initiative BH implemented the project “EU Questionnaire” financed by Good Governance Fund (GGF) with the aim to improve the capacities of BiH institutions to prepare high quality and timely answers to EU Questionnaire.
Budget
GBP 8,155,00
Project aim
The aim of the project is to assist BiH Directorate for European Integration to start technical preparations and develop capacities needed to prepare answers of BiH to start technical preparations and develop capacities needed to prepare the answers of BiH to the EU Questionnaire, by improving the guidelines and methodologies for answering the EU Questionnaire, prepared by DEI and enhancing the capacities for high quality translation of BiH legislation and official answers of BiH governments.
Towards the end of 2015, BiH Presidency and BiH Council of Ministers announced their ambition to apply for EU membership in the beginning of 2016. Although EU signaled that BiH has yet to fulfill certain key conditions before its application for candidacy status can be formally considered, experience of other countries in the region have demonstrated that it is never too early to start technical preparations for a key phase in the consideration a country’s EU application – which is answering to the European Commission Questionnaire (EU Questionnaire). The comprehensiveness and quality of individual country responses to the EU Questionnaire directly affects the Opinion (Avis) that the EC gives on the readiness of the respective country to gain candidacy status, which in turn, affects when and how accession negotiations will commence.
