14 SOC’s initiatives incorporated into the Gender Action Plan of Sarajevo Canton

The Government of Sarajevo Canton held its 49th session in December 2019, at which it adopted the Gender Action Plan of Sarajevo Canton for the period 2019 to 2022. The creation of this Gender Action Plan was initiated by President of the Commission on Gender Equality, Vildana Bešlija. Sarajevo Open Center participated in a working group that worked on the drafting of the Gender Action Plan, together with the Gender Center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and representatives of the ministries of the Canton of Sarajevo and other civil society organizations.

The Sarajevo Open Center has proposed 18 initiatives addressing the human rights of women and LGBTI people, 14 of which were adopted and incorporated into the Gender Action Plan 2019-2022.

Some of the adopted initiatives are:

  • The adoption of standards for the use of gender sensitive language in the Assembly and the Government of CS
  • The submission of all legislative and by-laws of the Assembly of CS to the Commission for Gender Equality of CS
  • Harmonization of the Rulebook on the acquisition and use of academic titles, professional and scientific titles in higher education institutions in the Sarajevo Canton
  • introduction of training programs as part of police professional training on hate crimes under the FBiH Criminal Code and their regular implementation, development and adoption of standard operating procedures for police and the judiciary in the case of hate crimes under the Criminal Code FBiH, and many others you can find on this link.

The Gender Action Plan was adopted in accordance with the Gender Equality Law of BiH and the Gender Action Plan of BiH 2018-2022, and is an important strategic document that lays the foundations for the effective achievement of gender equality in priority areas. We would like to thank the Commission for Gender Equality and the Ministry of Labor, Social Policy, Displaced Persons and Refugees of Sarajevo Canton for recognizing the Gender Action Plan as a significant instrument for fulfilling the obligations set out in the Constitution.