Minister Hrnjić on the occasion of the World Water Day: The obligation of everyone in BH and the world is to do more to protect and conserve water

The Federal Minister of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry Kemal Hrnjić attended today in Mostar the conference celebrating the World Water Day.

This year’s motto “Water for Peace” serves to remind that a large number of people in the world do not have access to drinking water, that water resources are increasingly polluted, affecting the reduction of available amounts of drinking water in addition to the visible consequences of climate change.

The conference pointed out that denying the right to access water can lead to tensions and conflicts, which is why it is necessary to ensure joint work on the protection and preservation of this resource. Good cooperation in common water management challenges can pave the way for cooperation in other areas as well.

The representatives of the water sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina are called to implement this year’s UN message on World Water Day, stressing that the issues facing the water sector today, as well as the entire environmental sector, should be solved through joint efforts of all institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the entire society.

The adoption of the FBiH Water Management Strategy 2022-2032 in both houses of the FBiH parliament, was identified as one of the most significant activities of the last year that defined the strategic goal – Protection of water quality and ensuring the availability of water resources and their sustainability.

“Aside from the Strategy, the Flood Risk Management Plans for both water areas in the FBiH were completed and submitted to the FBiH Government for adoption in the past year. A preliminary draft of the Law on Water Services was also prepared, which should soon be subject to the public consultation,” said Minister Hrnjić.

Furthermore, the implementation of the World Bank-funded Water Services Modernization Project started in FBiH, and the WATSAN FBiH project is nearing its completion, having achieved significant results in water supply, sanitation and wastewater treatment in 19 municipalities in the Federation.

“We are the country with the most drinking water per capita in the region, and we are the fifth in Europe. Bosnia and Herzegovina has seven times more renewable sources of drinking water than Germany! The Ministry will strive to support changes and speed up activities in the process of sustainable water management. There are risks and dangers associated with climate change – large floods and droughts are a threat to human safety and food supply. We should use water as a means to create a more peaceful and prosperous world for all.

We expect the working meetings of representatives of the water sector in BiH to contribute to solutions in overcoming the crises that affect water and the population and bring balance to the hydrological cycle and between the development and nature,” said Minister Hrnjić.

Today’s conference was jointly organized by the Agency for the Water Area of the Adriatic Sea, the Agency for the Water Area of the Sava River and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Water Management and Forestry.