Bosnia and Herzegovina - Government
Based on the etymolgy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it was the larger northern territory is named for the Bosna River; the smaller southern section takes its name from the German word "herzog," meaning "duke," and the ending "-ovina," meaning "land," forming the combination denoting "dukedom". The Government system in this country is the parliamentary republic type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 3 first-order administrative divisions - Brcko District (Brcko Distrikt) (ethnically mixed), Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Federacija Bosne i Hercegovine) (predominantly Bosniak-Croat), Republika Srpska (predominantly Serb)
National symbols
Golden lily; national colors: blue, yellow, white.
The flag
The National flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina has a wide blue vertical band on the fly side with a yellow isosceles triangle abutting the band and the top of the flag; the remainder of the flag is blue with seven full five-pointed white stars and two half stars top and bottom along the hypotenuse of the triangle; the triangle approximates the shape of the country and its three points stand for the constituent peoples - Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs; the stars represent Europe and are meant to be continuous (thus the half stars at top and bottom); the colors (white, blue, and yellow) are often associated with neutrality and peace, and traditionally are linked with Bosnia.
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note: one of several flags where a prominent component of the design reflects the shape of the country; other such flags are those of Brazil, Eritrea, and Vanuatu
The National Anthem
| Title | "Drzavna himna Bosne i Hercegovine" (The National Anthem of Bosnia and Herzegovina) |
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| Lyric/music | none officially/Dusan SESTIC |
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note: music adopted 1999; lyrics proposed in 2008 and others in 2016 were not approved
More about the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina
| Date of Independence | 1 March 1992 (from Yugoslavia); note - referendum for independence completed on 1 March 1992; independence declared on 3 March 1992 |
|---|---|
| National holiday | Independence Day, 1 March (1992) and Statehood Day, 25 November (1943) - both observed in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity; Victory Day, 9 May (1945) and Dayton Agreement Day, 21 November (1995) - both observed in the Republika Srpska entity |
| Legal system | civil law system; Constitutional Court review of legislative acts |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Constitution | |
| History | 14 December 1995 (constitution included as part of the Dayton Peace Accords); note - each of the political entities has its own constitution |
| Amendments | Decided by the Parliamentary Assembly, including a two-thirds majority vote of members present in the House of Representatives; the constitutional article on human rights and fundamental freedoms cannot be amended; amended several times, last in 2009 |
| Citizenship | |
| Citizenship by birth | no |
| Citizenship by descent only | at least one parent must be a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Dual citizenship recognized | yes, provided there is a bilateral agreement with the other state |
| Residency requirement for naturalization | 8 years |
| Executive Branch | |
| Chief of state | Chairperson of the Presidency Denis BECIROVIC (chairperson since 16 March 2024; presidency member since 16 November 2022 - Bosniak seat); Zeljka CVIJANOVIC (presidency member since 16 November 2022 - Serb seat); Zeljko KOMSIC (presidency member since 20 November 2018 - Croat seat) |
| Head of government | Chairperson of the Council of Ministers Borjana KRISTO (since 25 January 2023) |
| Cabinet | Council of Ministers nominated by the council chairperson, approved by the state-level House of Representatives |
| Elections/appointments | 3-member presidency (1 Bosniak and 1 Croat elected from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 1 Serb elected from the Republika Srpska) directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term but then ineligible for 4 years); the presidency chairpersonship rotates every 8 months with the new member of the presidency elected with the highest number of votes starting the new mandate as chair; election last held on 2 October 2022 (next to be held in October 2026); the chairperson of the Council of Ministers appointed by the presidency and confirmed by the state-level House of Representatives |
| Election results | 2022: percent of vote - Denis BECIROVIC - (SDP BiH) 57.4% - Bosniak seat; Zeljko KOMSIC (DF) 55.8% - Croat seat; Zeljka CVIJANOVIC (SNSD) 51.7% - Serb seat 2018: percent of vote - Milorad DODIK (SNSD) 53.9% - Serb seat; Zeljko KOMSIC (DF) 52.6% - Croat seat; Sefik DZAFEROVIC (SDA) 36.6% - Bosniak seat |
| Legislative branch | |
| Description | Bicameral Parliamentary Assembly or Skupstina consists of: House of Peoples or Dom Naroda (15 seats - 5 Bosniak, 5 Croat, 5 Serb; members designated by the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's House of Peoples and the Republika Srpska's National Assembly serve 4-year terms) House of Representatives or Predstavnicki Dom (42 seats to include 28 seats allocated to the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and 14 to the Republika Srpska; members directly elected by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms); note - the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has a bicameral legislature that consists of the House of Peoples (80 seats - 23 Bosniak, 23 Croat, 23 Serb, 11 other) and the House of Representatives (98 seats; members directly elected by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms); Republika Srpska's unicameral legislature is the National Assembly or Narodna skupština Republike Srpske (83 directly elected delegates serve 4-year terms) |
| Elections | House of Peoples - last held on 2 October 2022 (next to be held in 2026) House of Representatives - last held on 2 October 2022 (next to be held in 2026) |
| Election results | House of Peoples - percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by party/coalition - NA; composition - men 13, women 2, percentage women 13.3% House of Representatives - percent of vote by party/coalition - SDA 17.2%, SNSD 16.3%, HDZ BiH 8.8%, SDP 8.2%, SDS 7.1%, DF-GS 6.4%, NiP 5%, PDP 4.6%, NS/HC 3.1%, NES 3%, For Justice and Order 2.1%, DEMOS 1.9%, US 1.6%, BHI KF 1.3%, other 13.4%; seats by party/coalition - SDA 9, SNSD 6, SDP 5, HDZ BiH 4, DF-GS 3, NiP 3, SDS 2, PDP 2, NS/HC 2, NES 2, For Justice and Order 1, DEMOS 1, US 1, BHI KF 1; composition - men 34, women 8, percentage women 19.1%; total Parliamentary Assembly percentage women 17.5% |
| Judicial branch | |
| Highest court(s) | Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) Constitutional Court (consists of 9 members); Court of BiH (consists of 44 national judges and 7 international judges organized into 3 divisions - Administrative, Appellate, and Criminal, which includes a War Crimes Chamber) |
| Judge selection and term of office | BiH Constitutional Court judges - 4 selected by the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina House of Representatives, 2 selected by the Republika Srpska's National Assembly, and 3 non-Bosnian judges selected by the president of the European Court of Human Rights; Court of BiH president and national judges appointed by the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council; Court of BiH president appointed for renewable 6-year term; other national judges appointed to serve until age 70; international judges recommended by the president of the Court of BiH and appointed by the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina; international judges appointed to serve until age 70 |
| Subordinate courts | The Federation has 10 cantonal courts plus a number of municipal courts; the Republika Srpska has a supreme court, 5 district courts, and a number of municipal courts |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | |
| Chief of mission | Ambassador Sven ALKALAJ (since 30 June 2023) |
| Chancery | 2109 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20037 |
| Telephone | [1] (202) 337-1500 |
| FAX | [1] (202) 337-1502 |
| Email address and website | [email protected] http://www.bhembassy.org/index.html |
| Consulate(s) general | Chicago |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | |
| Chief of mission | Ambassador Michael J. MURPHY (since 23 February 2022) |
| Embassy | 1 Robert C. Frasure Street, 71000 Sarajevo |
| Mailing address | 7130 Sarajevo Place, Washington DC 20521-7130 |
| Telephone | [387] (33) 704-000 |
| FAX | [387] (33) 659-722 |
| Email address and website | [email protected] https://ba.usembassy.gov/ |
| Branch office(s) | Banja Luka, Mostar |
| National heritage | |
| Total World Heritage Sites | 4 (3 cultural, 1 natural) |
| Selected World Heritage Site locales | Old Bridge Area of Mostar (c); Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge (c); Stećci Medieval Tombstones Graveyards (c); Primeval Beech Forests - Janj Forest (n) |
Key Political parties and their leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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International organization participation
All Important Facts about Bosnia and Herzegovina
Want to know more about Bosnia and Herzegovina? Check all different factbooks for Bosnia and Herzegovina below.
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Bosnia and Herzegovina Factbook
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The Economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Learn about the Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Communication in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Popular Universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Enerny in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Transport in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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The Geography and society of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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The Environment of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Military and security in Bosnia and Herzegovina