INTERNATIONAL PROMOTION AND INVESTMENT CONFERENCE BEGINS IN SARAJEVO

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (April 23,2008) – The International Promotion and Investment Conference “Sarajevo canton 2008” started yesterday. The conference will last for two days. Participants are representatives of domestic and foreign companies, political and economic life of Bosnia and other countries. The aim is that Sarajevo Canton is represented as a potential investment destination.

The International Community's High Representative and the EU Special Representative in Bosnia Miroslav Lajcak emphasized in his welcoming speech that the most important issue Bosnia is facing today, is creation of jobs and rising of the living standards.

Lajcak emphasized that those are the tasks economic reforms need to focus on. Some of the priorities for promotion of business climate are mentioned in the Action Platform, passed by heads of governments last year.

Those priorities foresee simplification of bureaucratic procedures, enabling normal transport of merchandise and capital, removal of obstacles for labour mobility, improvement of the banking system supervision, modernization of laws from commercial sector.

The Bosnian President Haris Silajdzic emphasized in his address that the main obstacle to the attraction of investors to Bosnia is the fact that Bosnia does not have enough prepared projects.

The FBIH entity government has focused all its activities in all the sectors to achieving the goal of employment of 55.000 people. This was stated by the FBIH Entity Prime Minister Nedzad Brankovic who added that that goal can only be achieved through investments, institutions’ reform and infrastructural development.

”I hope that the positive trends from last year will continue. That includes growth of industrial production, increase of export, salaries and all other vital parameters which reflect the quality of a society”, Brankovic said.

The Sarajevo Canton Prime Minister Samir Silajdzic, who hosts the conference, stated that participants of this conference will reflect upon the past investments made in the Sarajevo Canton, as well as upon potentials for investments through the public investments programs.
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