The Prime Minister of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), Nermin Niksic, summed up all the projects and processes that the government he leads carried out during the current year, 2025.
In an interview, Niksic pointed out that the results of the work of the Government of the FBiH are visible through the increase in the minimum wage, the reduction of the contribution rate, and the growth of pensions and social benefits.
“The minimum wage was increased from 596 BAM to 1.000 BAM, non-taxable assistance to workers from 1.080 BAM to 2.520 BAM, compensation for parent caregivers from 596 BAM to 1.000 BAM, disability benefits for the first group from 403 BAM to 773 BAM, and for the second group from 219 BAM to 421 BAM. The lowest pension now amounts to 600 BAM, and through amendments to the law, it will rise to 702 BAM. One-time assistance to pensioners increased from 100 to 250 BAM, and to veterans from 100 to 200 BAM. The average wage was increased from 1.277 BAM to 1.590 BAM, while the contribution rate was reduced from 41.5 to 36 percent. Maternity benefits of 1.000 BAM were introduced, as well as scholarships for returnees amounting to 1.200 BAM,” Niksic said.
Niksic emphasizes that the key success of this Government is that, in extremely complex circumstances, they “stabilized the system and returned the focus to results.”
He also assessed that the situation in Motorways FBiH should be viewed exclusively through facts, which, as he said, clearly show that cooperation with the European Investment Bank (EIB) has neither been suspended nor called into question.
“On the contrary, at the beginning of September 2025, a record EIB tranche of 135.3 million euros was realized for three key subsections, which unequivocally confirms the continuity of financing and the trust of the international partner,” Niksic said.
According to him, all claims about the suspension of funds and demands for the dismissal of management are a matter of “incorrect and selective interpretation,” noting that this involves the “deliberate dissemination of disinformation.”
Niksic added that predictions of mass layoffs due to the decision on the minimum wage were unfounded, stating that as of December 31st, 2024, there were 551.842 employed workers in the FBiH, while on December 1st, 2025, 545.851 employed persons were recorded.
In the part in which he spoke about the defence industry, Niksic pointed out that the defence industry, during the mandate of this Government, went through a “fundamental turnaround.”
However, on the ground, the consolidation of companies is reflected in the transfer of funds generated by other companies due to a business model under which all companies are subcontractors in the assembly of joint products.
According to him, the value of exports of military equipment, ammunition, and explosives has almost doubled compared to the previous year, and growth continued in the first eight months of 2025 as well, with an increase of about 30 percent compared to the same period last year.
However, according to official data from the Agency for Statistics of BiH, exports of weapons and ammunition from BiH in the first 11 months of this year amounted to around 372 million BAM, which is 1.4 percent less compared to 377 million BAM for the same period last year.
Niksic reiterated the intention of the Government of the FBiH to build new defence industry facilities in Cazin and Tuzla, even though the Binas Workers’ Union sent a letter to the prime minister calling for the suspension of the construction of new facilities until the debt owed by this company is paid.
Speaking about cooperation with partners from the Coalition of the Three, the prime minister acknowledged that it is not always simple, but that it is “authentic and concrete.”
“There is dialogue, a willingness to find solutions and to make decisions in the best interest of citizens. Compromise in that process is not a sign of weakness, but a way for different views to be directed toward a common goal,” Niksic said.
