The European Commission and the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina signed an agreement associating Bosnia and Herzegovina to the EU4Health programme. This will enhance the country’s health system’s capacity to respond to immediate health needs of citizens and contribute to strengthening its resilience.
On 23 July 2024 Bosnia and Herzegovina officially joined the EU4Health programme. In its news announcement, EU reported:
With the entry into force of the agreement, health authorities, and the wider health community from Bosnia and Herzegovina, can fully benefit from EU funding opportunities under the EU4Health programme, on equal footing with EU Member States, Norway, Iceland, Ukraine, Moldova and Montenegro. Retroactively starting from 1 January 2024, both public and private health sector entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be able to access funding targeting critical areas such as improving cancer diagnosis, treatment and care, developing strategies for medicine stockpiling, bolstering mental health services, digitalisation of healthcare and tackling initiatives related to cross-border health threats.
Stella Kyriakides, Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, said:
“I warmly welcome today’s agreement, through which EU support from the EU4Health programme will enable Bosnia and Herzegovina to strengthen its healthcare sector. This agreement represents the EU’s commitment towards a strong and equitable cooperation to achieve our common goal to improve the health of citizens in both the Union and beyond as part of a strong European Health Union”.
EU4Health programme 2021-2027 was adopted as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to reinforce crisis preparedness in the EU. Its objectives are visually represented in a picture available here.
