CIAO DATE: 04/04

ECMI Civil Society Project in Bosnia and Herzegovina: National Minorities and Educational Reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Valery Perry

November 22, 2002

European Centre for Minority Issues

Introduction

Educational reform efforts have been recommended, developed and implemented in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) by various small and large organizations for several years. One significant initiative was the Shared Modernization Strategy implemented by the European Commission in 2001 and 2002, which sought to integrate local actors and experts in the reform and modernization process. In the summer of 2002, a broader, widely supported, coordinated and dedicated reform effort was initiated by the OSCE, which raised the profile of the issue of education as a key element of peace building, economic growth and post-war reconstruction.

However, throughout the various related efforts over the past several years, there have not been attempts at integrating national minorities into the process. ECMI, therefore, organized the workshop presented here to provide a forum for representatives of national minority groups from throughout BiH to include their ideas, concerns and opinions on education and educational reform. Only by ensuring that all of BiH's citizens are actively involved in the reform process can a truly reflective educational system be developed.

Associations representing the following national minorities in BiH took part in the workshop:

• Albanians
• Czechs
• Hungarians
• Macedonians
• Roma
• Slovenes
• Ukrainians

Representatives of BiH's Jewish and Italian communities were invited but unable to attend. They will remain informed of the progress.

The goals of the meeting included the following:

• Learn about the current OSCE strategy for integrating national minorities in the educational reform process

• Identify relevant laws and norms on the issue of the rights of national minorities

• Collect data on the status quo, and discuss the position of national minorities in education before the war

• Discuss the current status of national minorities in education in terms of access and content

• Discuss the value of integrating national minorities into the educational curriculum for all students

• Brainstorm methods of ensuring appropriate access and content

• Compile a list of recommendations for the authorities (both domestic and international) who are currently developing a reform strategy and implementing changes in the BiH educational system

• Strengthen the role of BiH's national minority groups in society in general through their active participation in this process

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