E-kapija: The Public Administration Reform Coordinator’s Office currently implements three projects that will be of huge significance in improving policy drafting of government institutions and coordination capacity building. Funds for these projects have been ensured from the Public Administration Reform Fund for this area.
According to Mrs. Semiha Borovac, National PAR Coordinator, one of the activities that will improve this area is implementing project that relates to improving rules and procedures for drafting laws, other regulations and general legal acts in BiH. The project represents a response to the current condition and noticed problems in the area of drafting legal regulations at all administrative levels. "In BiH, namely, there is a practice of frequent changes and amendments of laws, bylaws and other general legal acts. This is a consequence of considering model in which the most important step is to adopt some rule and that way respond to obligations of the institution’s work program, by ignoring how that rule will later on be implemented, how it will affect the rights and obligations of citizens, and how much it will cost", has been said by Borovac.
The practice has also shown the fact that the laws are being adopted without the analysis of economic justification and basis of its adoption. This is the reason why the mentioned project is being based on the idea of preparation and providing best solutions from the existing practice of drafting laws, other regulations and general legal acts in BiH.
"Through the project, defined will be the manners of improving and harmonizing existing rules through changes and amendments or adopting completely new rules that will be accepted by competent government authorities at all four administrative levels. The project will contribute to improving the legal system in BiH, will also ease adoption of the acquis communautaire on BiH road to the EU integration, with the goal of getting closer to the European Administrative Area", she has pointed out.
With the goal of improving efficiency and work capacity of public institutions, it is also being worked on the first phase implementation of project "Blueprint of Development of Central Bodies of Governments in BiH", relating to secretariats. Through this project, they will be enabled for more qualitative planning and preparation of annual and multi-annual work programs of governments.
The project also assumes that all governments will organize sessions, understand materials and have a possibility of monitoring performance of governments’ work in the same way. All this will contribute to capacity development of connecting and coordinating between different levels of executive government in BiH. "Established will be the information-communication and computer system as well as the procedures required for better communication between the government secretariats. The Government of the Federation of BiH will develop capacity and mechanisms for cooperation with cantons", Borovac has said.
Since BiH must harmonize its local legislation with those of the EU, the Public Administration Reform Coordinator’s Office also implements the project "Transposing EU legislation in the Legal System of BiH". All this, according to Mrs. Borovac, will quicken the process of BiH getting closer to the European Union. She also adds that these activities represent one more step forward in implementing the Action Plan 1 of the PAR Strategy – measures that relate to "Harmonization with EU regulations". The project stipulates trainings of 400 civil servants, who will acquire required knowledge through workshops and seminars and develop skills in order to ensure an effective, functional and rational transfer of the legal acquis communautaire acts’ contents into the local legal system, says Borovac. Anyway, direct project beneficiaries are civil servants included in legislative activities of institutions at all four administrative levels in BiH, as well as members of working groups for the European Integration.