The city of Bihac experienced great expansion of tourism in the recent couple of years, mostly due to the National Park “Una”, as well as numerous other attractions and natural beauties, adrenaline sports and sports on the water, hunting and fishing tourism.
Head of the Department for strategic planning and project management of the City of Bihac Jasmina Besirevic noted that the Law on Tourism of Una-Sana Canton (USC) had prescribed that municipalities or towns from the region of USC should establish their own Tourist Communities. The City administration of Bihac accepted this decision and established Tourist Community of the city of Bihac in December last year.
She explained that the main reasons for the establishment of Tourist Community of the City of Bihac are planned, not uncontrolled, as well as the development and improvement of tourism, the improvement of quality of tourist and other complementary services, preservation and creation of recognizable and attractive touristic environment with the use of all comparative advantages of Bihac as a city with long history, 758 years of existence and abundant natural beauties.
While talking about currents issues in the sector of tourism, Besirevic noted that all the problems in Bihac are identical or at least similar to those in other cities of the FBiH.
For the city of Bihac, one of the main causes of problems in the sector of tourism was abolition of Tourism Community of the Municipality of Bihac, which was established back in 1998, and it stopped working in 2003, added Besirevic.
Since cities haven’t had income from residence taxes, businessman in the FBiH, regardless of their activity, were obliged to pay 0.05 % of their total annual turnover as membership fees to the Tourist Community.
He stated that the Draft Law on Tourism in the FBiH is currently in the parliamentary procedure, as well as the law on residence taxes, which should regulate the sector of tourism and catering in the FBiH.
(Source: biznisinfo.ba)
