120 communities and 20 local governments country-wide will participate in the project “Strengthening the Role of Local Communities (Mjesne Zajednice/MZs)” which encourages community-led development and increases accountability of local governance. This newly established project also announces a new vision of local communities as places where citizens are directly voiced and enabled to constructively interact and involve in local development. These local communities should be the first point where citizens of BiH will express their concerns to the local government and participate within municipal decision-making processes that affect their lives. Improved MZs, as grass-roots government organisations that serve communities of around 1.000 people, represent a foundation for bottom-up approach in making changes in local governance.

Further, the project will work on enhancing service delivery and infrastructure of MZs. New regulatory framework for functional MZs will be developed, enabling empowerment of women and inclusion of marginalized groups into economic, social and political mainstream. It will also seek to develop inter-connected MZs and partnerships with civil society organizations. Long-term impact of the project activities is expected in having more responsive and engaged citizens, effective and citizen-centred municipal service delivery and increased general trust in public institutions.

The Swiss-Swedish co-financed project will be implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in BiH in partnership with the BiH Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees, the Ministry of Justice of the Federation of BiH, the Ministry for Administration and Local Self-Government of Republika Srpska, the Government of Brcko District and both Associations of Municipalities and Cities.