The Rectors’ Conference of BH: Amend the Framework Law on Higher Education

At the regular session held on 15 July 2020 at Jahorina, the Rectors’ Conference of Bosnia and Herzegovina established a coordinating body to draft a proposal for the amendment of the Framework Law on Higher Education.

After harmonizing the proposal to amend the said Law with the members of the Rectors’ Conference, the coordinating body chaired by the Rector of the University of Mostar Prof. Zoran Tomić, PhD, will refer it to the procedure to the relevant legislative bodies of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

At the Conference, the proposal of the platform for talks related to the amendments to the Framework Law on Higher Education, which was presented by Prof. Radoslav Gajanin, PhD, Rector of the University of Banja Luka, Prof. Rifat Škrijelj, PhD, Rector of the University of Sarajevo and Prof. Zoran Tomić, Rector of the University of Mostar, PhD, was discussed. 

Eight rectors of public universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina also discussed issued related to the process of accreditation of study programmes, and urged the relevant authorities at the BH level to speed up the filling of the Agency for Development of Higher Education and Quality Assurance of BH and to actively help finance the reaccreditation of study programmes. As stated during the session, public universities in BH are not able to independently finance the process of accreditation of study programmes with the existing budgets.

The Rectors’ Conference also discussed the information related to the Law on Tax and Tax Control of the Universities of Tuzla, Zenica and Sarajevo. In addition, the proposal of the Law on Income Tax of the Federation of BH was considered, certain provisions of which were disputed by the Rectors’ Conference. Accordingly, an expert finance working group has been formed which will make objections to the Law on Income Tax of the Federation of BH. As stated during this session, the Rectors’ Conference of BH considers certain proposals of the new Law on Income Tax of FBH to be a violation of the autonomy of universities that harm the development of higher education institutions in the Federation of BH. 

Another topic of this session was the work of higher education institutions during the coronavirus pandemic. Accordingly, the need to adhere to all epidemiological measures prescribed by the relevant authorities was pointed out. The rectors once again stressed that the health of students, professors, teaching assistants and administrative staff is the most important in order to preserve the teaching process and the work of higher education institutions.