On the occasion of the 8th Congress of the World Association of the BiH Diaspora held in Sarajevo, the Director of the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency of BiH (FIPA) Gordan Milinić and management talked with the delegation of the Association, led by the President Hasan Šehović, on improving cooperation and joint activities on attracting foreign investments, as well as on services and assistance that will FIPA provide to investors interested in investing in BiH.
![](/images/DIJASPORA 2.6.2016.JPG?px=518)
Bearing in mind that the common goal of FIPA
and the diaspora is improving the economic situation in the country through new
investment and job creation, and thus improving the living standards of BiH
citizens, FIPA will continue to be available to all investors from the diaspora
in order to facilitate them start-up in BiH and will follow them through all
stages of investment.
The Director pointed out on the importance of
the BiH 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. He invited
the diaspora representatives to inform their business partners and friends
about possibilities for investing in BiH and FIPA which will be at their
disposal.
Representatives of the diaspora pointed out among
other are the weakness of the economic diplomacy of BiH, which represent an
obstacle to efforts to attract more foreign investors in BiH. They also presented
several cases where foreign investors from countries where they live, wanted to
start business in BiH, but due to the complicated administration they gave up to
investing.
In the previous year SSDBiH has initiated the
opening of business clubs bringing together businessmen from the BiH diaspora
to jointly discuss investment opportunities in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The World Diaspora Association fully supported
the work of FIPA and effort to create jobs through foreign investments and to improve
the poor economic situation in the country. In addition to finding investors in
their ranks, the diaspora will try to engage foreign investors, their friends
and partners, and in addition to meetings with diaspora and business forum, it is
considering the possibility of organizing a large joint investment conference of
FIPA and SSDBiH.