Written question asked by Lord Hylton (Crossbench) on Monday, 19 January 2015, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 2 February 2015. It was answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns (Conservative) on Monday, 2 February 2015 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Question: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they, the European Union, and others are taking to reduce the level of unemployment in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in particular for young people.

Answer: The recent EU Initiative for Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) stresses the need for socio-economic reform which aims to tackle, amongst other important issues, unemployment. During his visit to BiH last week with his German counterpart, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) reiterated Her Majesty’s Government support for the EU Initiative, and emphasised that it was time to stabilise and stimulate the economy and to create jobs – especially for the young. We welcome the BiH Presidency’s agreement to a written commitment to the EU Initiative, and look forward to their pledges being swiftly implemented.

Secondary information