The Foreign Investment Promotion Agency of BiH (FIPA) and the World Association of Diaspora of Bosnia and Herzegovina organized on 21 April 2017 in Sarajevo a Business Forum with the aim to promote Bosnia and Herzegovina as an investment destination and to present opportunities for investing and attracting foreign investments.

For many years, FIPA has been successfully cooperating with the BiH World Association of Diaspora and stressing importance of the diaspora, considering their significant number abroad, their knowledge and skills, business contacts that they established abroad through their activities and work, contacts with the institutions of the countries in which they are working, as well as the capital and business results for which a large number of them became recognized in the foreign business community.

The Agency always highlights successful business stories of the diaspora realized in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The conference participants spoke about the inflow of foreign investments in BiH, a high percentage of the unemployed, as well as reforms to be implemented in the way of economic growth and recovery of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

It was pointed out that the 2017 is the years of reform and recovery of the economy in order to strengthen the competitiveness of BiH.

When it comes to the possibilities of the BiH economy, it was pointed out that Bosnia and Herzegovina is a regional leader in the furniture manufacturing, that the military industry is raising and that exports its products to 46 countries around the world, that the metal sector in BiH with 40.000 employees is also positioned as regional leader, and that more and more products such as cooking oil, flour and meat are exported to Turkey, that cheese and wine are exported in China and Japan, that machines weigh up to 25.000 tons are being produced in BiH, but that  the public opinion doesn’t know much about it.

A representative of FIPA had a presentation on investment opportunities in the sectors of energy, agriculture, tourism with a focus on health tourism, metal and textile sector, pointing out several small and medium-sized investment projects from each of these sectors.

Forum brought together 100 participants and businessmen from the diaspora, representatives of governments, and entrepreneurs who do business in BiH.

Speakers at the Forum were Hasan Šehović, President of the World Association of Diaspora of BiH, Ph.D. Maida Bećirović, Secretary of FIPA, Ph.D. Mehmedalija Hadžović, Minister of Commerce of FBiH, Zlatan Vujanović, President of Foreign Trade Chamber of BiH Ahmet Egrlić and representatives of USAID, Nova Banka, non-governmental organizations and local and foreign businessmen such as : Cromex, Sućo, Semić, Koola, who spoke about their experience in business in BiH, advantages in running business, as well as deficiencies and barriers they face.

FIPA highlights the fact that the diaspora has a significant number of prominent businessmen who might contribute to the development of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and therefore deserve to have special attention.

As a continuation of cooperation in the field of promotion of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the World Association of Diaspora of BiH and FIPA will organize in September this year a business conference with the World Tourism Organization.