EU Ambassador Wigemark marks 20th anniversary of the Central Bank of BiH

The international conference titled “20 Years of Stability” to mark the 20^thanniversary of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina was held in Sarajevo on 22 September 2017.

Addressing attendees on this occasion, Head of the EU Delegation and EU Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina Ambassador Lars-Gunnar Wigemark outlined the Central Bank’s encouraging achievements to date and spoke about the work ahead on the country’s path towards the European Union.

“As a country striving to become a full member of the European Union, Bosnia and Herzegovina will have to respect our rules and fulfill our criteria, many of which relate to the financial sector. The Central Bank will have to take part in all these processes, either as the main player or as part of a team that will, within its competencies, work towards the achievement of the set goals,” Ambassador Wigemark stated in his keynote address.

“In order for a country to become an EU member, the country needs to fulfil economic requirements of being a functioning market economy and also be able to cope with competitive pressures and market forces within the European Union,” Ambassador Wigemark reminded. Sound macroeconomic policies and management therefore remain a key part of the accession process, Wigemark concluded.

Benoît Cœuré, member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB), also addressed attendees, reminding that the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina was among the first to benefit from EU-funded and ECB-coordinated programmes for building and enhancing institutional capacity.

The conference was opened by Governor of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina Senad Softić, with introductory addresses by Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Mladen Ivanić and Chair of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Denis Zvizdić.

The conference also included participation of representatives of the IMF, World Bank, the EBRD, as well as the Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs of the European Commission.