BOSNIAN WOMEN’S INITIATIVE

 The "New" Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative

Overview

Since 1996, the Bosnian Women's Initiative (BWI) has been a significant component of the UNHCR programme in Bosnia and Herzegovina. BWI has focused on the reintegration and empowerment of women by improving their social and economic skills. It has mainly developed small-scale projects which have been implemented by local women's associations and NGOs under the umbrella of UNHCR implementing partners. Most projects have focused on income generation and educational and vocational training, with some contributing to community development. In general terms, the BWI can be said to have improved living standards and to have strongly promoted the empowerment of women.

Since the establishment of the Bosnian Women's Initiative five years ago, over 650 projects have been implemented throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, to the value of over 10 $ million. Local NGOs and associations working under the umbrella agencies have implemented some 99 % of approved projects. The number of direct beneficiaries of the Bosnian Women's Initiative projects is estimated at over 60,000 women.

In 2001, all four UNHCR Regional offices (in Banja Luka, Tuzla, Mostar and Sarajevo) have signed separate sub-agreements with the umbrella agencies and their corresponding implementing agencies. These agencies developed projects with the support of the umbrella agencies who submitted the projects to a Selection Committee which UNHCR chaired. The umbrella agencies monitored implementation under UNHCR's general supervision.

With the reduction of UNHCR funding in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the question has arisen whether the BWI can continue to operate even after UNHCR withdraws. As a first step, it has been confirmed that women's associations and NGOs within the BWI project, as well as associations interested in women's advocacy in general, strongly support the idea that the BWI be maintained. Confirmation was provided during a number of events, which the umbrella agencies organised during 2000 and 2001. During the events, some associations even expressed a willingness to assume ownership of the BWI and to become involved in its management.

Against this background, UNHCR has formulated the idea of a "new" BWI concept with major donors and key actors, and found strong support for the concept. How the "new" BWI is foreseen is spelt out in detail below.

Current status

Interest in the continued work of BWI even after UNHCR's withdrawal was stepped up as a result of the work of a UNHCR consultant, who was hired in the spring of 2001. The report presented by the consultant provides a good overview of BWI achievements in the five years since its creation. It also points out several weaknesses of the Initiative; e.g. that BWI has been influenced by changing UNHCR policy, including its focus on minority returns, to the detriment of local NGO development. While this may indeed be the case it is generally upheld through that the spirit of the BWI in relation to women and to the development of local NGOs has been largely maintained. The BWI has, moreover, played a key role in improving cross entity co-operation and in promoting minority returns by means of dialogue and co-operation among women.

Based on the consultant's findings in the field, and on her wide experience with similar initiatives elsewhere, the consultant fully endorsed the idea that the women of Bosnia should gain ownership and control of the initiative with the support of the IC, including UNHCR.

The transfer of ownership of the Bosnian Women's Initiative rests on UNHCR's full support as well as the commitment of the implementing partners and umbrella agencies. As a contribution to the process, UNHCR intends to maintain its advocacy efforts with donors and to make available, within its limitations, support in human resources and administrative funding which is necessary to carry forward the process of transfer over the next three years from 2002 - 2005.

UNHCR's contribution notwithstanding, it should be emphasised that the success of the Bosnian Women's Initiative is due primarily to the 60,000 women who have participated in the projects in the last five years. Equally important, of course, are the sustained efforts of the umbrella agencies' staff and the contribution of the agencies' own resources.

Objectives, proposed concept and obstacles

The umbrella agencies have fully participated in the drafting of concept papers for restructuring the Bosnian Women's Initiative. The papers are based on their extensive field experience and on their long lasting co-operation with the NGOs and Associations, and were discussed in meetings in Sarajevo in October and early November 2001. In what follows, we summarise the discussion.

· All those involved expressed unreserved support of the idea to continue the Bosnian Women's Initiative. It was agreed that the initiative would henceforth be called

Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative

· It was further recognised that the empowerment of women, which is a central BWI objective, would be well served by the creation of a new Initiative in which Bosnian women would eventually assume over-all managerial responsibility.

· It was agreed that the umbrella agencies (in Tuzla and Sarajevo on the model of Mostar and Banja Luka) would establish "BWI Working Groups" in their areas of operation, and that all such working groups would select one representative each who would become a member of a Steering Board. This Board is to be established officially on 15 November 2001*.
· In addition to the total of four representatives (one per AOR), it was agreed that representatives of the umbrella agencies also become members of the Steering Board (one per agency; two in total), as well as one ex-officio UNHCR representative, and optionally one representative for each of the major donors of BWI in the last five years (the US Government and the European Commission).

· The task of the Steering Board would be as follows: to prepare the Constitution for the locally-based Association/NGO, to develop a three-year strategy and workplan, to spell out the policy of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative, to define the procedures guiding the work ahead, as well as a management plan and a fund-raising external relations/promotion plan.

· Once the above mentioned is established and agreed upon, the Steering Board would appoint a Secretariat for the day-to-day running and the implementation of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative. The Secretariat would be the administrative office of the BiHWI, and be accountable to the Steering Board. It was agreed that training and capacity building of the Secretariat would be ensured by the umbrella agencies in order to allow for their overall assumption of responsibilities in two to three years.

· Further, the Steering Board would establish a countrywide Selection Committee for approval of projects presented by the NGOs and Associations. The Selection Committee would strictly adhere to guidelines and criteria established by the Steering Board. This would ensure maintenance of requirements set forth by the Donors. The Selection Committee would consist of one representative from each of the four Regional Working Groups, one each of the Umbrella Agencies, and one ex-officio UNHCR representative. It was further agreed that as the Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative grows in scale, the establishment of Regional Selection Committees should be considered.

· The current legal system in Bosnia and Herzegovina does not provide for the establishment of a countrywide NGO, since existing legislation is tied to the division of BiH into two Entities. This in effect means that a single NGO wishing to operate country-wide would have to register two separate legal bodies, in the two Entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where two sets of staff and two separate bank accounts would be required.

· The above-mentioned legal impediments constitute a very important obstacle to the creation of the BiHWI. More generally, it constitutes a major stumbling block to the establishment of any national NGO operating countrywide. The NGOs and Women's Association representatives therefore strongly recommended that UNHCR use its good offices with the authorities so that a legal framework is created for the establishment of NGOs operating in the two Entities under a single management and on a tax-free basis.

· In view of the above, the conclusion was reached that the Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative could best be launched and would initially operate as follows:

1. Until the BiH legislation allows for a countrywide Agency, the Initiative will begin working on all issues of concern for the establishment and functioning of the future BiHWI. Possibilities of registering outside Bosnia and Herzegovina, officially declaring it an international NGO, may be reviewed.

2. The composition of the Steering Board would be decided by the regional Working Groups, and the representatives of umbrella agencies, UNHCR and donors would eventually become part of an Advisory Group.

3. In the interim period, Malteser Hilfsdienst (MHD) has established a separate bank account on behalf of the BiHWI. Management terms for the bank account would be stipulated in a contract between the Steering Board and the MHD, following consultation with the Advisory Group. All funds donated will be made available to the BWI through a tripartite contract between the donor, the Steering Board and MHD.

4. All donations are to be made to the MHD bank account registered under:

Account holder: Malteser Hilfsdienst
Purpose: Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Initiative
Account number: 1941050165103115
with Micro Enterprise Bank Mostar

Sarajevo, November 2001