The project „Old Railroad Route” was officially presented in Travnik today (22.07.2020). This the European Union co-funded project will create new tourist products for tourists who visit the area of Central Bosnia during the summer. It will further improve the tourist offer and enable longer stays and more visitors in outdoor tourism in the area of Travnik, Vitez, Donji Vakuf, Busovača and Jajce.
For the project „Old Railroad Route” the European Union has allocated more than EUR 190,000 in grants within the EU4Business project in BIH. The project will be implemented for 18 months and its total value is more than EUR 260,000.
Among other things, the project will establish the bike route in the length of approximately 105 km, which will be promoted internationally in combination with tourist sightseeing of rural areas, cultural, historical and natural heritage, gastronomic offer, accommodation and catering facilities.
„Old Railroad Route” project is expected to increase guests, sales revenues and income among the local micro, small and
medium-sized enterprises, and increase the number of employees in the tourism sector in Central Bosnia.
According to the director of REZ Agency Maja Kišić, cycling tourism is becoming one of the fastest-growing niches of outdoor tourism, especially because of the emphasis on the necessary care for health and ecology by connecting recreation and tourism experience. Kišić added that the expected results will visible through establishing new companies in the tourism and new jobs.
Miroslav Matošević, the project manager of SBK / KSB Tourist Association, pointed out that the key phases relate to the establishment of a bike path in accordance with cycling standards, the establishment of a demanding ‘bike-friendly’ system that will include public and private companies, which will significantly strengthen cycling infrastructure and increase the economic performance and raise the quality of tourism services. The project will also create a sophisticated web platform for the distribution, promotion and use of tourism products.
Tahir Lendo, the Prime Minister of the Government of SBK / KSB, also addressed the audience, emphasizing that the project „Old Railroad Route” is of great importance both for the Central Bosnia Canton and for the whole of BIH.
The project is implemented by the Regional Development Agency for the Central BIH region (REZ Agency), the Tourist Association of SBK / KSB (TZ SBK / KSB) and NESA sistemi d.o.o. Meadow.
With the aim of strengthening BIH’s economy, the EU4Business project stimulates the development of entrepreneurship, export-oriented sectors, tourism and agriculture in BIH. EU4Business is worth EUR 16.1 million. It is jointly funded by the European Union (EUR 15 million) and the Federal Republic of Germany (EUR 1.1 million). The project is jointly implemented by GIZ, UNDP and ILO, from April 2018 to March 2022.
EU4Business is part of the Local Development Strategies – Local Self-Government and Economic Development Programme in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
