Lists of ministers - Commentary on BiH Constitution

Lists of ministers are included in the various Laws on the Council of Ministers. The number of ministerial portfolios has evolved in parallel with the competencies of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While the 1997 Law included the two ministries that are specifically listed in Article V.4 of the Constitution and established the Ministry for Civil Affairs and Communications, the list has substantially increased in the two subsequent laws.

In 2000, the Ministry for European Integration, the Ministry for Treasury and the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees were created. The creation of the last primarily responds to the need to coordinate the activities of the Entities in respect to refugee return and to the responsibility of Bosnia and Herzegovina to “ensure the highest level of internationally recognised human rights”.²⁸²²It also follows the assumption by Bosnia and Herzegovina under Article III.1(f) of the competencies to set policies and regulate matters related to immigration and asylum.²⁸²³

After 2003, the establishment of police bodies and of judicial and prosecutorial institutions at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina²⁸²⁴led to the creation of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Security. As a result, certain portfolios were redistributed between these two ministries and the Ministries of Civil Affairs and Human Rights and Refugees. In addition, the Ministry for European Integration was turned into a Directorate in order to maintain a number of ministries that can be equally divided between constituent peoples. Finally, in 2004, the Law was amended to establish the Ministry of Defence to deal with certain aspects of the defence competencies assumed by the State pursuant to Article III.5(a) of the Constitution.

Footnotes

See Article II.1 of the Constitution.
Law on Immigration and Asylum of Bosnia and Herzegovina of 23 December 1999 (OG of BiH, No. 23/99).
Law on the State Border Service, OG of BiH, No. 50/04; Law on the State Investigation and Protection Agency, OG of BiH, NO. 27/04; Law on the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, OG of BiH, No. 24/02; High Representative Decision on Law Establishing the State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, No. 50/00, OG of BiH, No. 29/00. Adopted by the BiH PA and published in the OG of BiH, No. 16/02.