Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Holds Its 82nd Session

SET OF LAWS ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY WITH “EI” MARK DEFINED 

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined four Proposal Laws, upon a proposal by BIH Institute for Intellectual Property, namely, on Protection of Business Secret as the right to intellectual property, on Protection of Topography of Semi-Conductors, on Patent, and on Seal, for the aim of harmonisation thereof with the EU acquis. These Proposal Laws, having an “EI” mark, will be sent to the Parliamentary Assembly of BIH for consideration under a shortened procedure.

Several Proposal Laws were also defined, on representation in industrial ownership matters, and on amendments and supplements of the Law on Industrial Design, to be sent to the Parliamentary Assembly of BIH for consideration under shortened procedure, since they follow now defined legislation which are obligatory to be harmonised with the EU acquis.

The Proposal Law on protection of business secret as the right to intellectual property regulates the matter comprehensively for the first time in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in accordance with relevant EU regulations.

The Law provisions ensure that the effects of business secret protection in BIH should be regulated the same way as in the EU member countries.

The proposed Law secures full harmonisation with an Agreement on Trade Aspects of Right to Intellectual Property, which is one among conditions for membership in the World Trade Organisation.

The session defined a Proposal Law on Protection of Topography of Semiconductor Products, harmonised with principles applied by EU members, thereby creating conditions for a faster and smoother entry of foreign capital to Bosnia and Herzegovina, in addition to fulfilment of preconditions for integration into the EU single intellectual property system.

The new Law ensures the level of protection like that in the European Union, which will result in higher legal certainty for potential right acquirers to topography of semi-conductor products in BIH.

The Law will ensure meeting of all requests stemming from international contracts, agreements and conventions binding for Bosnia and Herzegovina, and EU Directives, which are key preconditions in the further EU accession process.

The Proposal Law on Patents makes certain harmonisation with the EU acquis and fulfils the Stabilisation and Accession Agreement-stemmed obligations of our country.

The new Law both regulates and aligns with EU regulations protection of rights to intellectual, industrial and trade property, including effective means for implementation thereof.

Especially relevant is the regulation of an extended European patent and introduction of possibility to choose a procedure of protection of invention through consensual patent, as it is faster, simpler and cheaper than previous solutions and is relevant for SMEs and natural persons, for which the relative complex, time consuming and costly patent protection procedure represents a considerable obstacle.

The new Law opens the way for BIH to multilateral conventions on rights of intellectual, industrial and trade property, among which, the European Patent Convention, which is one Among basic standards for accession to the European Union and full membership of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the European Patent Organization (EPO).

The Proposal Law on Seal improves solutions regulating the way of acquiring, maintaining, content, turnover registration, cessation and protection of seal in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Law enables certain harmonisation of domestic regulations on protection of intellectual property with relevant EU regulations and the Agreement on Trade Aspects of Right to Intellectual Property.

Transposing Directive 2015/2436/EU will improve legal security of enterprises in a seal protection procedure and will secure better and more homogenous protection of industrial property of BIH.

Also, the new Law removes shortfalls evidenced in application of previous regulations, especially in part referring to administrative procedure of seal protection, and it introduces possibilities for registration of new forms of seals (audio seal, seal made of moving pictures, multimedia seal), for the aim of following technological progress.

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined a Proposal Law on Representation in Intellectual Property Matters, which regulates comprehensibly the aera of representation before the Institute for Intellectual Property in BIH for the first time in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is especially relevant for parties in such procedures.

The Council of Ministers of BIH takes measures this way to fulfil obligations stemming from the Stabilisation and Accession Agreement in connection with securing right to intellectual, trade and business property as applied in the European Union countries, including effective means for implementation thereof. The Law defines systematically conditions for representation in right to intellectual property-related procedures before the Institute for Intellectual Property of BIH. It also deals in detail with a procedure of entry into Register of authorised representatives, conditions for entry and delete, as well as establishment of a Chamber of Representatives in Protection of Industrial Property Matters.

The session defined a Proposal Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Law on Industrial Design, as a part of harmonisation with an Agreement on Trade Aspects of Intellectual Property, in the process of inclusion of BIH to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), including alignment with relevant standards applied by EU countries.

The Amendments and Supplements to the Law bring novelty in the procedural part in a way that all decisions made in administrative procedure before the Institute for Intellectual Property of BIH would be final in the first degree. No complaints would be possible to fill against the decisions, and instead, an administrative procedure would be possible to initiate before the Court of Bosnia dan Herzegovina, which would accelerate decision-making procedure and ensure availability and court surveillance in decision-making.

REPORT BY TEAM FOR DRAFTING APPLICATION FOR SOLIDARITY FUND ADOPTED

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted a Report by a Team for Drafting Application for Solidarity Fund of the European Union, which suggests that an application for assistance in rehabilitation from catastrophic floods of October 2024 was successfully filled within a deadline set, based on which Bosnia and Herzegovina will get EUR 45.7 million worth assistance.

Pursuant to a Decision by the European Commission and Directorate General for Regional and Urban Policy of EU (DG Regio) on acceptance of the application-defined damage estimate, the Council of Ministers of BIH authorises the Team for Drafting Application to the EU Solidarity Fund to continue its activities, together with responsible institutions from the Federation of BIH Government, cantons and municipalities, on implementation modalities of the EU Solidarity Fund proceeds, in line with the European Commission procedures.

The Office of Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers of BIH should draw and send to the Council of Ministers of BIH a decision on setting the remuneration level for the Team for Drafting Application for EU Solidarity Fund.

REMUNERATION LEVEL SET FOR TRGOVSKA GORA EXPERT TEAM

The Council of Ministers of BIH took a decision on Amendments and Supplements to a Decision on setting the level of single one-time remuneration for work of the Expert Team for Monitoring of Status and Activities as to the issue of storing radioactive waste and depleted nuclear fuel at the Trgovska Gora site.

In accordance with the Decision, remuneration for work to members of het Expert Team will be paid for 2023-2024 in KM 2,000 – KM 7,000 span. The Decision implementation will require total KM 76,000 net, plus belonging tax and fee amounts.

TRGOVSKA GORA EXPERT TEAM ADDED TO BY LEGAL EXPERTS

The Council of Ministers of BIH took the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations-tabled Decision on Amendments and Supplements to Decision in appointment of members of the Expert Team for Monitoring of Status and Activities as to the issue of storing radioactive waste and depleted nuclear fuel at the Trgovska Gora site.

Under the amended Decision, the Expert Team includes legal experts Enis Omerović, Nemanja Galić and Željko Bogut. It is about members of the Legal Team for Drafting Bosnia and Herzegovina Legal Interests Protection Strategy concerning storing of radioactive waste and depleted nuclear fuel at the Trgovska Gora site who were released from their duties after engagement of the Paris-based Laborde Law from France, to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina in further activities in the Trgovska Gora case.

The Coordination Body Jan. 23. 2205 decision concluded that the Legal Team should be dissolved and a part of it integrated with the Expert Team, to continue with legal assistance to both law office and domestic bodies, as appropriate.

NEW MEMBERS OF SUPERVISORY BODY FOR MONITORING REVISED STRATEGY ON WAR CRIMES

The Council of Ministers of BIH took the Ministry of Justice-tabled Decision on the Amendments and Supplements to Decision on Setting-Up Supervisory Body for monitoring of Revised State Strategy implementation for work on war crime files.

The Decision makes a substitution of members and alternate members of the Supervisory Body, not in position to represent institutions appointing them as their representatives, due to termination of employment or other circumstances preventing their membership in the Supervisory Body.

PIECE OF INFOAMTION ON USEE OF TAIEX EU ASSISTANCE INSTRUMENT FOR 2024

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted a piece of information on use of TAIEX assistance instrument of the European Union in Bosnia and Herzegovina for Jan.1-Dec. 31, 2024, drafted by the Directorate for European Integrations.

TAIEX (technical assistance and information exchange) is a key tool of the European Commission for extending short-term technical assistance to institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina in processes of harmonisation, application and implementation of the European Union acquis. The adopted piece of information shows that during 2024 total 25 requests for use of TAIEX were filled, 18 of them was rejected. Representatives from Bosnia and Herzegovina took part at 22 TAIEX seminars, with total 443 participants.

With the piece of information adopted, the Council of Ministers of BIH took a series of conclusions aiming further improvement of use of the instrument. The Directorate for European Integrations should provide the piece of information to appointed TAIEX coordinators with BIH Institutions, as well as organise coordinators’ meeting, along with organising trainings and meetings as appropriate on TAIEX instrument for Institutions severally.

The Council of Ministers called upon Institutions to use TAIEX more intensively, especially to the end of implementation of recommendations stemming from the European Commission 2024 Report on Bosnia and Herzegovina and recommendations from bodies set-up based on the Stabilisation and Accession Agreement.

The appointed TAIEX coordinators in BIH Institutions should provide regular pieces of information to the Directorate for European Integrations on planned activities and participants, as well as on all amendments as to coordinators’ appointments.

The use of TAIEX instrument is of an extreme importance for Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially in the context of opening of pre-accession negotiations with the European Union and fulfilment of obligations under the Stabilisation and Accession Agreement.

DISTRIBUTION AND USE OF 2025 QI CURRENT RESERVES

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted a piece of information on distribution and use of current reserve funds for QI-III 2025, and tasked the Ministry of Finance and Treasury to send the document to the Parliamentary Assembly of BIH for further procedure.

The piece of information suggests that out of planned KM 1,059,000 current reserves for QI this year, approved was total KM 114,500, of which KM 111,500 was implemented. Within the remainder of funds in amount of KM 947,500.00, there are funds in amount of KM 3.000,00 approved under the Council of Ministers decisions and they are available, since they were not implemented over the reported time.

The Council of Ministers of BIH planned KM 519,000 in current reserves for I-III 2025.

Planned was KM 90,000 for members of Collegium of both Chambers of the Parliamentary Assembly of BIH, KM 270,000 was planned for members of the Presidency of BIH, but none of it has been approved or implemented.

REPORT ADOPTED ON Q I 2025 BUDGET EXECUTION

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted the Budget Execution Report of Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and international obligations of Bosnia and Herzegovina for Q I-III 2025, to be posed at the Ministry of Finance and Treasury web site.

The total realised revenues, receivables and finances of BIH Institutions for the first three months of 2025 amounted to KM 287,999,576, of which KM 242,993,376 were revenues from the Single Treasury Account of the Indirect Taxation Administration of BIH.

The total realised expenditures and costs from the BIH Institutions budget in I-III 25 were KM 314,872,386.

Based on state foreign debt obligations, KM 343,973,060.26 was paid in the first three months of 2025, meaning that all obligations were serviced.

PROPSAL AGREEMENT ON ESTABLISJMENT AND ACTIVITIES OF FRANCE-BIH DEVELOPMENT AGENCY DEFINED

The Council of Ministers of BIH adopted a negotiations report and defined a Proposal Agreement between the Council of Ministers of BIH and Government of the Republic of France on Establishment and Activities of the French Development Agency, Proparco And Expertise France in Bosnia And Herzegovina.

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined a need for a temporary application of the Agreement, and proposes to the BIH Presidency to approve its temporary application from the day of signing to taking effect thereof.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BIH should provide the Proposal Agreement to the BIH Presidency for further procedure, with a proposal for the Minister of Foreign Affairs of BIH as the authorised BIH signatory thereof and proposal for approval of its temporary application,

RATIFICATION OF GRANT AGREMENET FOR MOTORWAY V c SUB-SECTION KVANJ-BUNA TUNNEL

The Council of Ministers of BIH defined a Proposal Decision on ratification of a Grant  Agreement between Bosnia and Herzegovina and French Investment Bank for “Mediterranean Corridor: Motorway V c Sub-Section Tunnel Kvanj – Buna in Bosnia and Herzegovina”, the European Joint Fund for Western Balkans/ WB-IG04-BIH-TRA-05, Contract No. (FI No.) 98144, operative No. (Serapis No.))2015-0773.

The Grant Agreement worth total EUR 21,106,084, signed on March 14, 2025 in Sarajevo and on March 17, 2025 in Luxembourg, refers to a construction project of nearly 5.16 km long  motorway V c sub-section between Mostar South and Počitelj, including a bridge, another tunnel Kvanj-Buna and an access road. The project implementing agency is the Public Company Motorways of Federation of BIH, Ltd. Mostar.

CONSENT TO APPOINTEMTNS

The Council of Ministers of BIH granted several consents, upon a proposal by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for appointment of Colonel Cosmin Serban to the post of Defence, Military, Naval and Airforce Envoy of Romania in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Land Forces Colonel Philippe Abraham to the post of Defence Attaché of the French Embassy in BIH, as well as Colonel Takacs Janos to the post of Defence Attaché of Hungary in our country.

Also, a consent to appointment was granted for appointment of Major Shaun K. Tateishia to the post of Assistant Military Attaché of the United States of America in Bosnia and Herzegovina. (end)

Link for Photos:

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