VAT on donated food has been abolished in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in BiH called a historic decision.
Thanks to unprecedented unity among political parties, the House of Peoples of the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina unanimously adopted this decision today, giving the hungry hope for a better tomorrow. The recently adopted Law on Amendments to the Law on Value Added Tax will enable the donation of food worth about 130 million KM per year to those who cannot afford it, USAID said in a statement.
USAID supported this campaign as part of its engagement to empower organizations and citizens of BiH to become leaders of development activities in their communities.
“Because no one can better understand all the specific challenges they face or find better solutions for them than the citizens of BiH themselves,” stated Head of the USAID Mission in BiH, Courtney Chubb.
She congratulated everyone who was involved in the campaign for being able to convince political leaders that the spirit of cooperation and compromise between political parties must overcome radical political attitudes and stagnation if they want real progress and the fulfillment of citizens’ needs.
To date, the US government, primarily through USAID, has provided two billion dollars to support economic, democratic and social progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina.