Norway strongly supports the continuation of reform processes for the benefit of the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina through the establishment of a modern and effective judiciary, because that is what the citizens and the country need at the moment, said Olav Reinertsen, Norwegian Ambassador to BiH during a meeting with the representatives of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH.

Building a better and more efficient judiciary in BiH has been the focus of cooperation between Norway and the HJPC BiH for years, and the results of numerous joint activities are very visible in many areas. As emphasized during the meeting, the sustainability of the achieved results and the continuation of progress will be a priority in the coming period, which is why it is necessary to maintain and strengthen partnerships.

During the meeting, attended by the President of the HJPC BiH Halil Lagumdzija, Director of the Secretariat of the HJPC BiH Admir Suljagic and Ana Bilic Andrijanic and Kenan Alisah, leaders of the Improving Judicial Quality Project implemented by the HJPC BiH with the support of the Norwegian Government, special emphasis was placed on the importance of adopting amendments to the Law on the HJPC BiH in order to successfully continue with the reform of the judicial system.

Our goal is an independent, responsible, efficient, quality judiciary tailored to the citizens and we must and will not deviate from that goal, and these principles and this vision of the HJPC BiH become vital through concrete activities we are working on in cooperation with the Government of Norway, pointed out the President of the HJPC BiH Halil Lagumdžija.

During the meeting, they also discussed about the numerous challenges that the HJPC BiH and the judicial system face on a daily basis, but also about the future activities that this institution will implement in order to improve the current situation.

The Director of the Secretariat of the HJPC BiH emphasized the commitment of this institution to undertake all activities that will ensure the independence, responsibility and quality of the judiciary in BiH in line with the rest of Europe, regardless of all impacts and challenges.

Through the cooperation of the HJPC BiH and the Government of Norway, intensive work is ongoing for years to strengthen the work of courts by improving court management, efficiency and quality of court decisions, introducing mentoring system, improving automatic data processing systems to reduce unresolved cases and improving infrastructure of the judicial institutions. Significant results and progress are already visible, which is why further strengthening of partnership and cooperation is extremely important.

With the aim of continuous implementation of activities leading to efficient work of courts, the Improving Judicial Quality Project, with the support of the Government of Norway and in cooperation with the Norwegian Courts Administration, implements since 2019.