British Ambassador Visited the CBBH

Today,  Governor of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina Kemal Kozariæ, Ph.D.  and  his associates met with the Ambassador of the United Kingdom in Bosnia and Herzegovina H.E. Edward Ferguson, and they discussed on the economic developments in Bosnia and Herzegovina.  

During the talks,  it was concluded that all levels of authorities  in Bosnia and Herzegovina must give their full contribution to the decrease of the unemployment rate, now being  27.5%, which is one of the largest in the Region and which is currently the biggest issue of BH economy. "It is necessary to carry out comprehensive reforms of the business environment in order to stimulate investments bringing with them  new  jobs, and investors need the security and political stability and safety of the business environment, because without those there will be no investment," said the Governor.  

British Ambassador confirmed that a comprehensive reform of the business environment must be a priority for the authorities, but that the process of implementation must be carried out thoughtfully and carefully in order to maintain the balance between revenue and expenditure sides. "The public must be adequately informed of all the steps and their meanings, because reform processes often touch socially sensitive issues and we have to be sure that the public understands the meaning of each action taken and its purpose," the Ambassador Ferguson added, confirming once again that the Government of the United Kingdom will continue to support Bosnia and Herzegovina on its European path.  

Ambassador Ferguson and Governor Kozariæ  also exchanged views on macroeconomic indicators for 2014. "We have behind us an extremely difficult year, for which we have significantly reduced our initial forecasts, but, however, the fact that we ended the year with 0.7% GDP growth   and that  in 2015 we expect  the GDP growth rate of  2.5%  , as well as, a growth rate of industrial production of 5.0% , are reasons for slight optimism, " said the Governor.