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1 June 2007 - Between October 2004 and March 2007, a consortium led by ECORYS1 implemented the EC funded project “EU Support to the Economic Policy Planning Unit (EPPU)” in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Within the EPPU a new unit was established, the Economic Policy Research Unit (EPRU). The main function of the EPRU was to provide research based policy advice to the Council of Ministers.
| All reports on this webpage have been prepared within the "EU Support to the EPPU" project funded by the EU. The views expressed in the reports do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. |
The overall objectives of the project were to contribute to the progress in the Stabilisation and Association process and to foster economic growth in BiH, by strengthening BiH Government’s capacity to devise and implement economic policies, and to generate concepts and ideas for government’s use in its reform efforts. The project specifically aimed at supporting the BiH Council of Ministers in its efforts of establishing an economic think-tank supportive to science-based economic policy planning.
Activities concentrated on capacity building of the organisation and its staff, including effective management, research and publications, professional networking and the building of authority and credibility of the EPPU. Important project outputs included the preparation and publishing of Quarterly Economic Trend Reports; supply of expertise and advice to the BiH Government; provision of expertise for BiH Government negotiations with the EU and IMF; three high level international conferences; regular spotlight seminars on different issues; a large number of internal as well as public workshops; an intensive training programme including mentored research, on the job training, attendance of seminars, etc.; the establishment of a Documentation Centre and Website. These activities have resulted in a considerable number of research papers. Ultimately, the goal was for the EPPU to become a recognised government institution reporting to the CoM. This goal was achieved when in late 2006 the Government of BiH transformed the EPPU into a government body renaming it Directorate for Economic Planning (http://www.eppu.ba/). The project initiated a total of 17 research projects: 4 programmes of mentored research within the unit, 8 research grants and 5 contracts with research institutes. In addition 5 policy briefs were produced by members of the EPPU’s Academic Advisory Board (AAB). These publications can be downloaded through the links below. Mentored Research
Through mentored research, five junior professional staff of the EPRU were coached and trained to conduct research and produce a paper by an international expert in his/her field of specialization. |The research focused on foreign trade; real sector macroeconomics; money, prices & financial markets; and public finance. The topics addressed are all of high relevance for policy advice as they touch on issues such as exchange rate policies, growth-stimulating and poverty-reducing policies as well as fiscal policies. Papers Čaršimamović, Naida (2007) “Corporate Tax Burden in Bosnia and Herzegovina in Cross-Country Comparison.” Mentored by Dr. Bjørn Volkerink, Senior Economist, ECORYS Nederland, Rotterdam. Didik, Nermin (2007) “Current Account Deficit Sustainability in Bosnia and Herzegovina.” Mentored by Prof. Vladimir Gligorov, Vienna Institute, WIIW. Kristić, Ivona (2007) “Sustainability of the Currency Board Arrangement in BiH.” Mentored by Prof. Vladimir Gligorov, Vienna Institute, WIIW. Lubura, Tanja (2007) “Trade Policy and Issues in Relation With Poverty Reduction in Bosnia and Herzegovina.” Mentored by Dr. Thierry Apoteker, Managing Director, TAC. Research Competition
Under the project a research competition was organised, aimed at stimulating both young and experienced economists of BiH origin to do research on economic topics of high relevance for the country. Seven proposals were selected and awarded a grant to conduct research and write a paper. During the writing, the participants received academic supervision to ensure that the research papers would meet international standards. A mid-term workshop was held to discuss progress and to exchange ideas between the various researchers. Papers Ćosić, Damir (2006) “Foreign Bank Entry and Bank Efficiency in Bosnia and Herzegovina: A Reserve Management Approach.” Efendic, Adnan & Aldin Medjedovic (2006) “Economic Criteria for EU Membership: Bosnia and Herzegovina.” Nikolić, Aleksandra (2006) “Policy Impacts on Agribusiness Performance - Case Study B&H Milk Industry.” Silajdzic, Sabina (2006) “Patterns of restructuring and competitiveness of the BiH manufacturing industry and the role of technological capabilities.” Suljkanovic, Midran (2007) “Corporate Governance in Post-Privatized Bosnia and Herzegovina: Impact of Ownership Structure on Performance.” Trputec, Zoran (2006) “The Concept of Human Sustainable Development and Economic Development – Some Original Contributions.” Zijad Džafić (2006) “A Comparative Analysis of Obstacles Obstructing the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Countries of the Western Balkans.” Research Subcontracting
The project’s research subcontracting programme was an important instrument to establish contacts between EPRU researchers and recognized researchers in BiH and at international research institutions. Research was subcontracted to five research institutions. The teams conducting the research (CASE, Free University of Brussels, CEPOS and Economic Faculty of Sarajevo) interacted intensively with the EPRU team and presented their work at several conferences and seminars, contributing to information exchange and capacity building at the EPRU. Papers Antczak, Rafał; Małgorzata Antczak; Karina Kostrzewa; Wojciech Paczyński & Ranko Markuš (2007) “Bosnia and Herzegovina – Meeting Copenhagen Economic Criteria for Accession to the EU.” CASE – Center for Social and Economic Research. Bayar, Ali & Amela Hubic (2007) “Outline for Input-Output Tables of BiH.” Free University of Brussels. Cepos (2006) “Standard Methodologies for Conducting Household Budget Surveys, Labour Force Surveys and Calculating CPI – The Comparison With the Methodologies Used in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Household Budget Survey (HBS).” Hadziomeragic, Amir; Malgorzata Jakubiak; Nermin Oruc & Wojciech Paczynski (2007) “Regional Free Trade Agreements of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Analysis and Policy Recommendations.” CASE – Center for Social and Economic Research. Puljć, Mirko & Azra Zaimović (eds.) (2007) “Domestic Public Debt of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Analysis and Recommendations.” University of Sarajevo, School of Economics. Policy Briefs
The EPPU’s Academic Advisory Board (AAB) consists of seven top BiH scholars and was founded to provide administrative and legislative bodies – and especially the Council of Ministers and its chairperson – with continuous access to high-quality economic expertise. The AAB has played a role as reference and advisory board to the EPPU and mediator between EPPU and BiH policy makers. One of the contributions of the AAB has been the production of a number of policy briefs, giving insights into current developments and issues in the context of BiH economic policy. Briefs Domazet, Anto (2007) “Economic Aspects of Restitution.” Economic Institute and Economic Faculty in Sarajevo. Papić, Žarko (2007) “Social Policy Development.” Independent bureau for humanitarian issues (IBHI-BiH). Šuman, Željko (2007) “WTO Negotiations on Agriculture. Can DOHA be resuscitated?” University of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Šuman, Željko (2007) The Impact of Globalization on Higher Education: A View from BiH.” University of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Šunje, Aziz (2007) "The Role of Government in Supporting Entrepreneurship and SMEs.” Sarajevo Graduate School of Business (SGSB).
1 Consortium members include: Economic Faculty Ljubljana, Economic Institute Sarajevo, Human Dynamics, Hypodomi and the Vienna Institute (WIIW).
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