BOSNIAN PRESIDENT HARIS SILAJDZIC VISITS KUWAIT

KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait (October 27,2008) - The Bosnian President Haris Silajdzic
begins his two-day visit to Kuwait today.President Silajdzic will hold meetings with the Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah IV Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and with the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Nasser Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah.

A delegation of the Bosnian businessmen, consisted of the directors of several Bosnian companies and banks: Džemal Vlahovljak (Energoinvest), Faruk Širbegović (Širbegović), Elvedin Borovina (Hidrogradnja), Amer Bukvić (BBI Banka), Hamed Ramić (Euroasfalt) and Medaga Hodžić (BH 4 d.o.o. Jajce), is accompanying the Bosnian President during his visit to Kuwait.

During the visit, the Bosnian delegation will meet with businessmen from Kuwait and discuss the possibilities for economic cooperation.

Also, the Bosnian Deputy Finance Minister Fuad Kasumovic will sign the agreement on the elimination of double taxation between Bosnia and Kuwait.
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EU HALTS 50 MILLION EUROS IN PRE-ACCESSION PROJECTS FOR BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 27,2008) - The European Commission has halted projects for Bosnia worth 50 million Euros, until Bosnia cancels or refunds taxes on grants and donations.

The dispute was triggered after Bosnia on June 16 signed a key pre-membership deal,called the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, with the European Union which stipulates that the country should either cancel taxes on, or allow the swift refund of taxes collected on pre-accession funds, Zara Halilovic from the Bosnian Directorate for European Union Integration said.

Bosnia still has no legislation that would allow the tax exemption for donations and grants. For years this has been a stumbling block and the source of major frustration for many international organisations which were forced to pay taxes on any money they provided for Bosnia.

Local legislation does stipulate the possibility of refunding taxes paid on donations and grants but the procedure is lengthy and complicated. As a result, the European Commission has halted tenders for its pre-accession projects for Bosnia, worth some 50 million Euros, waiting for new legislation that would finally cancel taxes on grants and donations, Halilovic said.

The spokesman for the Bosnian State Tax Administration, Ratko Kovacevic, said his organisation is ready to propose new legislation that would exempt the taxation of such funds, yet it was uncertain if and when this would be discussed by its managing board.

Analysts believe that this technical obstacle reflects the indolence and sluggishness of local governments, which is jeopardising Bosnia’s EU accession process.

Only a small fraction of reforms ,previously agreed with the EC,has been initiated or implemented by Bosnia so far. The EC Implementation Report , which will be released in November,is expected to reflect Bosnia’s poor performance on its EU path.
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REGIONAL MILITARY AND CIVILIAN EXERCISE "SEESIM 08" STARTED

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 27,2008) - Regional military and civilian exercise SEESIM 08, 4th in the SEESIM series, started on Thursday and it will last till October 31st.The main control group of the exercise within the initiative of the ministries of defence of the countries of the southeastern Europe is placed at the Bulgarian national military training centre "Charalitsa" , the host of the exercise.

The exercise includes military and civilian institutions of the ministries of defence of the following southeastern European countries: Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Italy,Macedonia, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine.

The following international organization will participate in the exercise: UN, OCHA (Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - UN), IFRC (International Federation of Red Crescent and Red Cross Societies), NATO, EADRCC (Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre), EU MIC (EU Major Incident Centre), Stability Pact/DPPI and RACVIAC (Centre for Security Cooperation) and Georgia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia will participate as spectators.

The southeastern European countries, participants in the exercise, will, with the constant communication on their territories, simulate natural or other disasters and make communication with the main control group of the exercise at the Bulgarian national military training centre "Charalitsa". The SE Europe Brigade headquarters (SEEBRIG) will be stationed at the Turkish crisis headquarters with the response cell.

The aim of the exercise is to stimulate national civilian/military agencies of the ministries of securities, ministries of defence and structures of civil protection in fulfilling important tasks of the nations participants and responsibilities in response on emergencies.
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ANNUAL INFLATION RATE IN BOSNIA IN SEPTEMBER 8,7%

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 27,2008) - The Bosnian Statistics Agency has released information about the September 2008 prices being by average 8.7 per cent higher compared to September 2007.

The list of products whose prices changed the most in the past year differs from the list with showing monthly changes.

On the annual level, the biggest increase was reported in the segment of transport (14.8 per cent), followed by food and beverages (12.6 per cent), rental costs and utilities (12.4 per cent).
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BOSNIAN GOVERNMENT ADOPTS PROPOSAL FOR ECONOMIC COOPERATION WITH SLOVENIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 27,2008) - The Bosnian government adopted an agreement proposal for the economic cooperation between Bosnia and Slovenia, providing for a more intensified cooperation in 14 areas (agriculture, forestry, water supply, healthcare, education, pharmaceuticals, and so on).

The proposal has been written by the Bosnian Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, and the document is now on its way to the Bosnian State Presidency.

Bosnia's Prime Minister Spiric also announced about a government decision harmonizing the country’s visa policy with the one in the EU. Under that decision, the citizens of 66 countries of the world will be exempt from the visa requirement, if they plan to stay in Bosnia for up to 90 days.
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AVERAGE GROSS SALARY IN BOSNIA IN AUGUST WAS 1,131 BOSNIAN MARKS

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 27,2008) - The average gross salary paid in August in Bosnia was 1,131 Bosnian Marks (735 US Dollars), which was by 17.4 per cent higher compared to August 2007.

The latest official statistics also show that, compared to August 2007, the rate of its nominal growth was 17.3 per cent,Bosnian daily Oslobodjenje reports.

In the past year, the healthcare and social welfare sector saw the highest increase of salaries – by 33.9 index points.

According to the same source, the average net salary paid in Bosnia in August 2008 was 764 Bosnian Marks (496 US Dollars), showing a 12-per-cent nominal growth since December 2007.
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