More than 200 representatives from Bosnia and Herzegovina’s judiciary gathered yesterday to mark the completion of U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Judiciary Against Corruption Activity (USAID/JACA).
Over the past five years, the U.S. government has worked to address corruption within the judicial sector and build a strong network of professionals committed to fighting corruption. Through USAID/JACA, 47 prosecutors and 25 judges completed specialized training programs to improve their effectiveness in handling high-level corruption cases. This training is now part of the official curricula at the entity training centers in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska. Additionally, 1,022 judges and prosecutors completed the USAID/JACA-developed Ethics Course on integrity and conflict of interest prevention, which is now mandatory for all judicial officials every three years, as required by the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH.
While public skepticism about the judiciary’s capacity to combat corruption remains, USAID Measure’s latest Judicial Effectiveness Index of BiH (JEI-BiH) shows the first signs of progress in five years. Investigations and indictments in high-profile corruption and organized crime cases have increased. One key improvement is the prioritization of high-profile corruption cases through the special labeling system, leading to a rise in indictments by USAID/JACA partner Prosecutor Offices from five in 2021 to 18 in 2022, and 13 in 2023. The surveys also reveal that 60% of judges, prosecutors, and judicial staff believe that effective anti-corruption measures in their institutions are in place, up from 45% in the initial 2020 survey.
The project also helped cut down the length of court proceedings for high-level corruption and organized crime cases in partner courts, speeding up hearings and trials, and improving court efficiency overall.
“Together we are building a robust community of professionals dedicated to the fight against corruption. Much progress has been made. At the same time, I am sure we all agree that there are still many unresolved challenges in the judicial sector that are hindering Bosnia and Herzegovina’s progress and European path. The United States will remain by your side in this paramount fight for the future of this country,” stated the USAID Deputy Mission Director to BiH, Emily Coffman Krunić.
While notable progress has been made, challenges remain. The U.S. government reaffirms its commitment to supporting BiH in its fight against corruption, a key barrier to the country’s progress and its European integration. A new program was announced that will continue partnering with the judiciary, focusing on specialized institutions at the state, entity, and cantonal levels, to further fight corruption and organized crime.
