Based on the legislative gap analysis, UNDP designed recommendations for national stakeholders on the amendments needed to ensure that environmental and criminal laws were aligned with the EU acquis and international norms. The recommendations were collated in the Legal Roadmap: Harmonization of BiH legislation with EU environmental acquis.
UNDP ensured that the environmental criminal law was embedded into a training curriculum for judges and prosecutors at the Centres for Judicial and Prosecutorial Training.
Through a series of case studies, UNDP designed a mapping methodology for environmental human rights violations which was collated in the Mapping of Environmental Human Rights in BiH: Case Studies Compendium.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), a series of systemic and social challenges affect the environmental rule of law, such as insufficient coordination among national stakeholders, legislative gaps and a lack of expertise and resources to investigate and prosecute environmental crimes. Meanwhile, the pressure on the environment is increasing more than ever. According to some estimations, there are hundreds of illegal landfills across the country, with dangerous and toxic waste deposited with communal waste, posing risk to public health.
To strengthen institutional capacities of national actors and to enable them to tackle environmental crime, UNDP implemented the Eco-Justice Project with support from UNDP’s Global Programme for Strengthening the Rule of Law, Human Rights, Justice and Security for Sustainable Peace and Development (the Global Programme). UNDP provided support to amend environmental and criminal laws to align with the EU acquis 1 and international norms; offered training opportunities for judges and prosecutors; facilitated mapping of environmental human rights violations and advocated for their effective investigation to improve public trust in national institutions.
UNDP convened or sought feedback from more than 100 stakeholders from government institutions, including judiciary and civil society organizations (CSOs) to conduct a legislative gap analysis. Based on its findings, UNDP offered recommendations to state officials on the amendments needed to ensure that environmental and criminal laws are aligned with the EU acquis and international norms. The findings and recommendations were collated in the Legal Roadmap: Harmonization of BiH legislation with EU environmental acquis.
To strengthen the capacity of actors involved in the investigation and prosecution of environmental crime, UNDP developed the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) on the Response to Environmental Incidents and Accidents for law enforcement agencies and environmental inspectorates. An innovative participatory approach was applied to develop the SOPs. In particular, officials from several state agencies (environment, water and forestry inspectors, organized crime and border police officers) were interviewed to understand the reasons for weak coordination between institutions and ensure that SOPs address these weaknesses. In December 2023, UNDP presented the SOPs to the national stakeholders for their approval.
UNDP advocated for the inclusion of environmental criminal law into a training curriculum for judges and prosecutors. As a result, in 2024, these specialized trainings will be delivered at the Centres for Judicial and Prosecutorial Training. In addition, nine judges and prosecutors (including two women) were trained to educate their peers on these matters.
UNDP also developed a mapping methodology for environmental human rights violations, promoting their understanding and examination by academia, the judiciary, civil society and the wider public. The mapping was conducted through a series of case studies and collated in the Mapping of Environmental Human Rights in BiH: Case Studies Compendium. 2
REGIONAL COOPERATION
In cooperation with the Judicial and Prosecutorial Training Centres, UNDP organized a three-day expert seminar on criminal legal protection of the environment which brought together 45 prosecutors (21 women, 24 men), judges, environmental and criminal inspectors from both centres, as well as lecturers and experts in the field of environmental law from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and France. Due to the interest from the newly established Serbian Interior Ministry Environmental Crime Unit, their team also joined the training which enriched the exchange between various pillars of the system, offering the perspective from two neighbouring countries.
Under the project run by the UNDP Accelerator Lab team, UNDP in Bosnia and Herzegovina undertook a joint effort with UNDP Kosovo 3 in designing and conducting a study to identify opportunities for women's engagement in environmental justice as a pathway to peace. The aim of the study is to examine the environmental and conflict risks, especially for women in rural or less developed areas, and provide insights when women have been at the forefront of environmental activism and advocacy. Furthermore, the study will serve the purpose of raising the public awareness of environmental issues and empower communities, especially women, to advocate for environmental justice.
Since the project received a significant amount of attention from the national stakeholders, it culminated with a Regional Meeting on Environmental Justice, with co-funding from UNDP’s Istanbul Regional Hub. With high-level participation from the national and regional stakeholders, the event served as a platform to present the results achieved during the project, as well as to bringing together cross-sectoral peers from the region to jointly discuss, address and share expert views on regional similarities of environmental crime.
Lessons learned
A participatory approach applied for the SOPs development established a platform for discussion and coordination among national stakeholders involved in the investigation and prosecution of environmental crime.
Translation of UNDP environmental framework documents, such as the 2022 Environmental Justice Guidance Note and the technical paper, into official country languages facilitated engagement with CSOs.
UNDP maintained close contacts with national stakeholders sharing the vision and the goals of the project, securing national ownership.
The project has positioned UNDP in BiH as one of the key actors in the field of environmental justice and a trusted partner that is able to work with a wide range of stakeholders and jurisdictions as a neutral convener.
The European Union acquis is the collection of common rights and obligations that constitute the body of EU law, and is incorporated into the legal systems of EU Member States.
The mapping will be published in 2024.
All references to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999)