50 million euros of European funds will be distributed to more than 160.000 beneficiaries of social assistance in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The money will be managed by domestic local authorities.
The money is officially intended to “rehabilitate the consequences of rising energy prices for the economy and vulnerable households.”
This is stated in the European Union’s (EU) energy support package for BiH. This assistance is intended for socially vulnerable ex-combatants, pensioners, and citizens without income.
What do the socially vulnerable say about this help?
If they receive one-time aid, which could amount to around 250 euros per household, they will spend it on medicine and food, they said in Sarajevo and Banja Luka, the two largest cities in BiH.
Ilijaz lives with his wife and two adult children. He borrowed money to pay for his daughter’s English language studies. The daughter has been at the employment office for more than ten years and works occasional part-time jobs, as well as the son, who graduated from high school and has been looking for a permanent job for 25 years.
He doubts that he will get help from the money donated by the EU.
The citizens of Banja Luka are of the same opinion. Kristina is unemployed and a beneficiary of social assistance. She lives with her husband, who has difficulty moving and says that she could “really use” the funds from the EU.
“I receive welfare benefits of about 110 BAM (about 55 euros), my husband 240 BAM (about 120 euros) and that’s all we live on. I take care of him, I don’t work and we eat at a soup kitchen. If we didn’t have that, I don’t know how and what we would do. And if we have that money, thank you very much, we will spend it on medicine. Last week, I bought medicine for 165 BAM (about 80 euros) for the two of us,” Kristina stated.
As part of the energy package, the EU has earmarked 70 million euros for BiH, and in addition to 50 million euros for the population, ten million euros is intended to help small, micro, and medium-sized enterprises.
Another ten million euros is intended for energy efficiency, i.e. installation of facades on houses and buildings, solar panels, heat pumps, and the like.
Businesses and households will first have to apply for their projects and provide the same amount of funds as the one they will receive from the EU through the institutions of BiH as a donation.
Aid to BiH is part of a package worth 500 million euros for the Western Balkans, which was announced in October last year by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, during her visit to the countries of the region, Radio Slobodna Evropa reports.
