B&H holds the presidency of the CEFTA Agreement for 2013 and on this occasion, the B&H Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, in cooperation with the project of support of trade policy and capacity-building in B&H, financed by the EU, will organize a series of activities from the Program Presidency of B&H of the CEFTA agreement, which began yesterday and will continue today. One of these activities is that event called ‘CEFTA week’, which began yesterday in Sarajevo. The beginning was marked with a plenary session with a speech by Ermina Salkičević – Dizdarević, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of B&H, Ambassador Peter Sorensen, Head of the EU Delegation to B&H and Special Representative of the EU to B&H and Sanjin Arifagić, Strategy Coordinator of SEE 2020 in RCC.
‘’The efforts we have made with the CEFTA agreement has improved the position of products from B&H. The initiatives undertaken in CEFTA related to transparent procedures, and the signing of multilateral regional agreements have to be the priority in the next period. During the presidency of B&H of the CEFTA agreement, we are concentrated on the provisions relating to transparency, which were very important for trade of B&H in the region. We have achieved some progress and we hope for more in the future’’, said Deputy Minister Salkičević-Dizdarević in her speech.
Ambassador Peter Sorensen said ‘’CEFTA agreement is an important tool for economic growth and a very efficient platform for learning, which brings the best out of regional practice. All members of CEFTA are open and small economies. Free trade between them offers ways to increase competitiveness and to introduce necessary reform measures, which would enable them to use their full potential of the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU. This would also help them to prepare companies in CEFTA countries compete in the single market of the EU when the time comes’’.
During these two days, 9 sessions will be held, where representatives of the structure of CEFTA agreement, international organizations, international communities and chambers of commerce of the countries in the region will give an overview of the implementation of the CEFTA agreement.
(Source: B&H Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations)
