A Memorandum of Cooperation for the development of a new cycling route between Sarajevo and Pale between the City of Sarajevo, the Municipality of Sarajevo Stari Grad, Istočni Stari Grad and Pale was signed today at the premises of the European Union Delegation in Sarajevo. The host of the Memorandum signing ceremony and the initiator of the project was the Head of the European Union Delegation to BiH and EU Special Representative in BiH, Ambassador Johann Sattler.
The Memorandum of Cooperation was signed by Mayor of Sarajevo Abdulah Skaka, Mayor of Stari Grad Sarajevo Ibrahim Hadžibajrić, Mayor of Pale Boško Jugović and Mayor of Istočni Stari Grad Bojo Gašanović, who expressed their satisfaction with the possibility of cooperation and joint work on connecting the cities. The Memorandum will enable preparation of a feasibility study for the construction of the Sarajevo – Pale cycling route, which will contribute to improvement of the tourism offer and connect the local communities.
Ambassador Sattler thanked the Mayors for signing the Memorandum and for their cooperation with the European Union in BiH. “This project will provide a new tourist offer not only for the citizens of Sarajevo and Pale, but also for tourists coming to BiH. Cooperation between cities and Entities is very important and this is a confirmation that a lot can be achieved when we join forces. We still have a lot to do, especially the development of the country-wide Tourism Strategy, which will enable the use of EU funds for the development of tourism in BiH,” said Ambassador Sattler.
Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH Staša Košarac was present atthe signing ceremony and noted: “I am pleased with the implementation of this project and I believe it is a good model of connecting municipalities from the Republika Srpska and the Federation of BiH. The project will represent a significant new offer of tourist facilities in East Sarajevo and Sarajevo. We have to develop our capacities, because tourism can be an important industry in BiH. The international community has demonstrated that it wants to be involved in the development of tourism in BiH and I look forward to partnering with the European Union to develop a strategic framework for tourism development in BiH. ”
After the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation, Ambassador Sattler held a meeting with Minister Košarac to discuss the development of a country-wide strategy for the development of tourism which is a precondition for securing significant financial assistance from the European Union for the development of tourism and improvement of economy of local communities in BiH.
The European Union continuously supports the development of tourism and the improvement of the tourist offer of BiH. Considering that the tourism sector is one of the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Union has allocated €1.6 million in grants through the EU4Business project with the aim to save jobs and improve the tourist offer in BiH.
