As part of the Youth-Friendly Local Communities programme, representatives of the Institute for Youth Development KULT recently visited the Municipality of Jablanica, the City of Bijeljina, and the Municipality of Centar Sarajevo to present them with certificates recognising their progress in improving the status of youth in their communities. Through this programme, the Institute for Youth Development KULT identifies and acknowledges local governments that are making concrete efforts to improve policies, programmes, and services for young people.
The programme aims to create environments that support young people’s personal and professional development, encourage their active participation in society, and make it possible for them to remain in their local communities in the long term. At the same time, it provides local authorities with a structured self-assessment tool to review existing youth policies, measures, and practices, and to identify clear areas for further improvement. The focus is on a systematic and sustainable approach to youth work.
The Municipality of Jablanica and the City of Bijeljina were awarded certificates with a score of 25% on the youth-friendliness scale. This result indicates that both local governments have taken initial but meaningful steps toward improving the status of young people and are demonstrably investing effort in developing youth policies.
This level of certification reflects institutional willingness to engage consistently with youth issues, while also highlighting clear potential for further development of mechanisms that would offer young people better living conditions and greater involvement in social and decision-making processes.
The Municipality of Centar Sarajevo ranked in the second performance category, with a score of 50% on the youth-friendliness scale. This result confirms that the municipality recognises the needs of young people and implements targeted, structured, and sustainable measures to support them.
Based on the results of the first public call, Centar ranks among the highest-performing local communities in the programme. This certification level indicates that young people are informed about issues that affect them, that programmes addressing their interests are in place, and that decision-making processes with a direct impact on youth are conducted transparently.
During the visits, representatives of the Institute discussed continued cooperation with officials from Jablanica and Bijeljina, as well as opportunities to further strengthen youth participation across all aspects of local public life, particularly in decision-making processes. In Jablanica, meetings were held with Mayor Emir Muratović and representatives of the relevant municipal department, Aldin Širić and Alma Bajramović.
In Bijeljina, the certificate was received by Boban Stankić from the Department for Social Affairs and Administration, with Milena Maksimović and Tatjana Letić also in attendance, so they could be recognised for their contribution to achieving this result.
In the Municipality of Centar Sarajevo, the certificate was presented to Mayor Srđan Mandić during a session of the Municipal Council, with particular acknowledgment given to civil servants Lejla Dizdarević and Samir Arnautović for their role in the process.
Partners of the Institute for Youth Development KULT in the first public call of the Youth-Friendly Local Communities programme included the Youth Council of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Youth Council of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Youth-Friendly Local Communities programme is a unique mechanism in Bosnia and Herzegovina that enables local governments to assess their approach to youth in a structured and measurable way. Through clearly defined criteria and indicators, the programme strengthens institutional accountability, improves the quality of public policies, and encourages cross-sector cooperation in youth work. Certification is not an end in itself, but a tool for continuous improvement, learning, and planning future steps based on the real needs of young people in local communities.
