-Joint work on the promotion of Bosnia and Herzegovina and attracting foreign investors
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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.