RHP returnees receive keys to new homes in Bosnia and Herzegovina

PARIS - Today, Bosnia and Herzegovina hosted a ceremony in Derventa in order to mark the handing over of keys to 24 beneficiary families, within the framework of the Regional Housing Programme (RHP), which is managed by the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB). The selected beneficiaries are returnees from Croatia and will now be moving to their reconstructed pre-war houses. 

The ceremony was attended by Semiha Borovac, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Minister of Human Rights and Refugees, Davor Čordaš, Minister of Human Rights and Refugees of Republika Srpska, Milorad Simić, Mayor of Derventa, Massimo Mina, Head of Operations, Section for Social Development, Civil Society and Cross-Border Cooperation at the EU Delegation to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and representatives of partner organisations, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR), the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and the CEB. Representatives of the other three RHP partner countries Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro were also present. 

In her speech, Minister Borovac said: “The successful implementation of the RHP and the resolution of the issue of refugees and internally displaced persons will not only solve this painful and long-standing problem in the region, but also contribute to its prosperous future, which is our common interest.” 

The ceremony also provided an opportunity to mark the launch of the reconstruction of a care home which will house elderly residents thus far accommodated in collective centres. The project “CEB II” is partially financed through CEB loans and aims to close collective centres in Bosnia and Herzegovina and provide durable housing to more than 7,000 people still living in collective and alternative accommodation across the country.