15 May 2015: Declaration from Bosnia
A strong set of ideas for the European Rural Parliament campaign was agreed on 15 May, when the first Rural Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina met in Sarajevo.
150 participants from all parts of the country gathered in the Federal Parliament building to debate the condition of rural areas. They passed a Declaration, covering many issues in agriculture, rural development and civil society. This will be fed into policy debates and action in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and will contribute to the European Rural Parliament’s Manifesto to be debated at Schärding in November. Among the problems identified were low agricultural productivity; the lack of protection for local products; weak cooperation between sectors in rural development; low capacity to absorb EU funds; and weak involvement of civil society in decision-making processes. The Declaration includes many recommendations to public authorities at all levels and to civil society, for a more dynamic approach to the well-being of rural areas.
The Declaration can be found at http://bit.ly/Rural_Parliament_Declaration.
