A quick update on ALMPs in FBiH

I am happy to see that the Federal Employment Institute has introduced a new active labour market policy’s (ALMP) programme, named “Obuka i rad” (Training and Employment), which combines on-the-job training (3 months) and hiring subsidies (6 to 12 months). Around EUR 1 million is allocated for the implementation of the programme in 2019.

Together with my colleagues, I have been advocating for putting more focus on training measures – at the cost of simple wage subsidies, which are still predominant ALMP measure in BiH – since 2015. There is a pretty decent regional evidence that measures that combine training and hiring subsidies are among most effective ones in mid-to-long term perspective. “Obuka i rad” indicates that decision-makers have recognised potential of this design and, hopefully, will continue to develop training measures in the near future.

I am posting here links to two of my research which discuss this topic, both published by Analitika think tank in 2016:

• Weak Labour Markets, Weak Policy Responses: https://bit.ly/2W81LMH
• Active Labour Market Policies in Bosnia and Herzegovina: From direct employment to strengthening the employability of Jobseekers: https://bit.ly/2rpjFLS