In the framework of the 5th cycle of Subcommittees, established under the Interim Agreement, representatives of the European Commission and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) institutions met in Brussels on 18 March 2013, to discuss the level of approximation of the country in the field of internal market and competition with EU rules. At the end of a constructive meeting, the European Commission and Bosnia and Herzegovina agreed on the following conclusions:

The European Commission reiterated the need for establishing an effective and efficient coordination mechanism allowing BiH to speak with one voice. This is particularly important in the field of internal market and competition.

Overall, little progress has been reached by BiH in the last 12 months, except for a few areas. The European Commission welcomed legislative progress reached in the field of intellectual property rights (IPR) and the good functioning of the IPR Institute. It also welcomed the adoption of the state aid law and the establishment of the state aid council. However, the latter is not yet operational due to the lack of financial resources. The Commission welcomed the solid work of the Competition Council.

Some progress was noted in the field of banking. The major obstacle for legislative progress in the field of insurance is the lack of a functioning governing board of the BiH Insurance Agency. This needs to be remedied immediately.

The Commission is strongly concerned with the on-going stalemate in the area of public procurement. BiH is the only country in the region that has not yet transposed the 2004 EU public procurement directives. With EU assistance a new draft law has been prepared, which needs to be adopted as a matter of priority. All contracting authorities, from the state level to municipalities, would benefit from the use of EU compliant rules in requiring more competition amongst bidders and in receiving better and often less expensive offers for services, supplies and works. The Commission underlined the need to publish the decisions of the review bodies.