On the occasion of six months since the appointment of the new FBiH Government and Minister Sanja Vlaisavljević as the head of the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sports, a press conference was organized today at which the Ministry’s work in the past period was presented.

“Today it is six months since I first entered the Office and met these people, my team, with whom, it seems, I have made many important steps and beautiful stories. At the very beginning, I was primarily interested in the recommendations of the audit, which I tried to analyse with my team and create an action plan for their implementation. We have decided, with big steps, to move towards opening up to the public, so that everything we do is visible and accessible to everyone, and this is the way of working we have chosen. That’s why we’re here today. I will give the floor to my colleagues, who will present all the great steps we have taken in the past six months. I would like to add that the team I work with is a team of top professionals that promises a lot of great work and good messages,” Minister Vlaisavljević said.

Adnan Džindo, Assistant Minister for Sports spoke about the Transfer for Sports 2023: “This year, the Ministry supported 161 projects in total, thereof: 111 sports facilities for construction, reconstruction and equipping, 26 sports federations and 24 federations and clubs of individuals with disabilities. We are also proud of the Decree on Awarding the Top Sports Results, within which the amount of KM 723,000 was allocated, of the total of KM 780,000 planned for this year. I am proud to point out that, at the recently organised ceremony, 141 sportsmen, nine team champions, and 11 coaches and selectors were awarded for their excellent sports results in the period from 1 January to the end of July. By the end of this year, more than KM 1,000,000 will be spent for direct awards for top sport results achieved this year. I must also point out the Ministry’s support to the umbrella committees, the Olympic and Paralympic Committee, who were allocated KM 50,000 each. The Paralympic Committee had not resolved the issue of accommodation, but thanks to the good cooperation of Minister Sanja Vlaisavljević and the Cantonal Minister of Culture and Sports Kenan Magoda, we managed to secure funds and permanently resolve this issue. I believe that by the end of this year we will provide the conditions for all those gold medals that we are extremely proud of to be in one place.

This year, we also changed the system of allocating the intervention funds. Namely, the Ministry has been helping sportsmen go to competitions when they achieve a sports result, but are unable to provide financial resources for justified reasons.

As far as capital transfers are concerned, we managed to solve the justification of funds for the Olympic pool in Mostar and we paid KM 1,600,000 for the first tranche. Eight million is earmarked for the Olympic swimming pool in Mostar this year, and if the implementer and contractor follows the progress of the works, we will transfer all the earmarked funds this year. And finally, it is worth mentioning that in September, together with numerous Bosnian athletes, we marked the European Week of Sports in a completely new way.”

Mirela Milićević Šećić, Expert Advisor in the Division for Cultural-Historical Heritage and Culture, spoke about the work of the Division in the past period: “In the Budget of the Federation of BiH, we had established transfers in the amount of almost KM 15,000,000, and in the process of funds allocation that were mostly allocated through public invitations, the responsibility and professionalism of the employees was extremely important. Care was taken to comply with all general and special criteria and act in accordance with the Decisions of the FBiH Government. The news is that, for the first time, we launched transfer to support the mobility of artists. It is an opportunity for individuals, artists to achieve their own promotion, present their work and artistic creativity, but also to promote our country. We have given the opportunity to artists residing in the FBiH to realise artistic programmes in the Federation, as well as in the whole of BiH and beyond. I believe that this will be a significant incentive for the development of artistic creativity, for which, as we have seen through practice, there are real needs. I believe that we will continue to work in this way. Interested users can get all the necessary information about this and all other activities from the employees of the Ministry and the Culture Division.”

Adis Salkić, Assistant Minister for Youth, spoke about significant innovations in the past period: “In the past six months, we implemented the Transfer for Youth, which supported nearly seventy projects of organisations and associations dealing with youth issues. We provided continuity of support to the FBiH Youth Council, the umbrella organisation for youth issues at the level of the Federation of BiH. What is new and the concept promoted by Minister Vlaisavljević when she became the head of this institution is transparency and openness, and we in the Youth Sector try to follow that principle. We actively participated in all invitations from youth organisations and were active partners and participants in all events. What I am particularly happy about and what is most important to mention today is the Youth Strategy that has finally been launched. It is not just another document stored in a drawer, which just sounds good. About twenty federal institutions will work on this document, and it will sublimate all the policies, activities and measures implemented by federal institutions that concern youth, with the aim of improving the position of young people in the Federation of BiH and creating a better, higher quality and more creative environment. The FBiH Government implements through federal institutions about 140 activities and measures that directly or indirectly concern the youth issues. If these measures were directed towards a strategic goal, and I believe there will be more, I expect positive developments in creating a much better environment for young people in FBiH. The process implies complete openness because, in addition to the institutions, young people who are the most invited to speak about their problems and the way to solve them will actively participate in it,” Salkić emphasised.

Azra Lojo Hajro, Head of the Department for Scientific Research at the Institute for the Protection of Monuments, spoke about the Institute’s activities: “In the past period, we have innovated a number of regulations and other acts that existed earlier in the Ministry, but we have now adapted them to the users. We issued 75 consents for the export of art in the past six months, and facilitated the process of exporting art to contemporary artists, especially when it comes to collective exports. We have defined the conditions for the export of cultural goods.

It is also important to mention the implementation of the project proposal procedure for BiH’s participation in the Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art next year, which the Ministry realised, and we believe that the selection of the external commission, the “Measure of the Sea” project of the University Gallery in Mostar by the artist Stjepan Skoko and the commissioner and curator Marin Ivanović will be successful. It is also important to mention the Days of European Heritage event, which we are implementing in an innovative way this year, as well as the Youth and Heritage programme, given that this year, for the first time, young people will choose the best works themselves. The Youth and Heritage segment is very important because in this way we educate young people and create a new generation of professionals in the field of cultural heritage protection,” emphasised Lojo Hajro.

Robert Stergar, an expert consultant for architectural and archaeological heritage, spoke about the work of the Institute for the Protection of Monuments: “In the past six months, the Institute for the Protection of Monuments had a number of activities within its jurisdiction. The institute issued 93 expert opinions in the past six months. We also monitor the performance of conservation and restoration works on buildings for which building permits have been issued, in the capacity of conservation supervision. We regularly provide professional assistance in the preparation of project tasks for specific jobs or in the preparation of project documentation for specific facilities. The institute monitors the works on the route of Corridor Vc, organising archaeological inspection and, if necessary, protective archaeological research. Also, through representatives, the Institute participates in the work of the Interstate Coordination Committee for the Implementation of the Management Plan for Necropolises with medieval tombstones, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and organises numerous other activities within its jurisdiction. This year, we plan to publish a new issue of the yearbook “Naše starine”, wanting to continue with this publishing activity,” concluded Stergar.