In the coming period, the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina could be left without sufficient quantities of food, since a significant number of truck drivers are missing. Nikola Grbic, president of the Association of Carriers for Domestic and International Transport of Republika Srpska, said that for Avaz.
He stated that it is known that BiH imports as much as 70% of food, mostly through trucking companies.
”In the past two years, more than 4,000 professional drivers left BiH, primarily to EU countries. Unfortunately, this trend has continued. However, the number of departures is expected to increase significantly after the coronavirus pandemic ends. Currently, a large number of drivers are missing in BiH and there is practically no trucking company that does not have five to 20 empty trucks in the parking lot because there is no one to drive them,” Grbic explained.
According to him, they sent letters to all competent institutions of BiH, but they did not find understanding.
However, government officials are clutching their heads today because they do not know how to stop the departure of drivers. When it comes to corona passports announced by the EU, that is a big problem because we know that not a single vaccine has arrived in BiH, not counting donations. Even if some vaccines come, it will be those from Russia and China, which the EU does not recognize, and it will not be possible to get a passport with those vaccines, Grbic emphasized.
He stated that he should know that if the trucking companies do not work, it means that there are no imports or exports.
”That leads us to many problems. There will be no one to bring food, raw materials for our companies and there will be no one to export finished products from BiH. The institutions took this problem very lightly, they did not adequately address the issue. This is going to be a huge problem. We sent numerous letters to the Council of Ministers of BiH and other institutions, but no one ever deigned to invite us to discuss this topic, Grbic pointed out.
“The introduction of corona passports in the EU could grow into a big problem and affect BiH economy,believes the director of the Sector for Industry and Services and the secretary of the Association of Metal and Electrical Industry of the FBiH Chamber of Commerce Almin Malisevic.
He states that transport and other companies that deliver products to the EU market could find themselves in a situation where, due to the impossibility of vaccinating drivers, they cannot deliver their products on time.
”We appeal to the authorities to keep such a possibility in mind and to ensure the vaccination of drivers so that the transport of passengers and goods can function smoothly,” Malisevic pointed out.
He states that transport and other companies that deliver products to the EU market could find themselves in a situation where, due to the impossibility of vaccinating drivers, they cannot deliver their products on time.
”We appeal to the authorities to keep such a possibility in mind and to ensure the vaccination of drivers so that the transport of passengers and goods can function smoothly,” Malisevic pointed out.
