EU4People: Social Protection Programme

Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to face persistent structural challenges in its social protection system, marked by decentralized governance across entities, cantons, and municipalities, uneven access to public services, limited digitalization, and an overreliance on institutional and reactive forms of care. While poverty has modestly declined in recent years, inequalities remain entrenched, and the socio-economic situation of vulnerable and marginalized groups, particularly children living in poverty and at risk of social exclusion, single-parent households, older persons, children and adults with disabilities, Roma communities, and women outside the labour market has largely stagnated. These challenges are further exacerbated by adverse demographic trends, including population ageing, low fertility, youth outmigration, and low female labour force participation, which place increasing pressure on the sustainability and effectiveness of the social protection system.

The IPA 2022 Support in the Social Sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina – Action “EU4PEOPLE - Social Protection Programme” responds directly to these challenges by supporting the transition towards an integrated, inclusive, and community-based social protection model, aligned with the European Pillar of Social Rights, the EU Care Strategy, the European Framework for Quality of Social Services, and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s EU accession commitments. The Action builds on and accelerates ongoing reforms under the entity-level and Brcko District Laws on Social Services as well as Social and Child Protection, child protection and deinstitutionalization strategies, and emerging frameworks for workforce professionalization, inspection, and quality assurance.

The overall objective of the Action is to improve social inclusion, reduce inequalities, and advance gender equality through a modernized, EU-aligned social protection system that delivers quality, rights-based services to those most in need.

Led by UNICEF as the coordinating agency, and implemented in partnership with UNDP, UNFPA, and ILO, the Action brings together complementary mandates and expertise in social and child protection, governance and digital transformation, demographic resilience and gender equality, and decent work and labour inspection. Strong government ownership is ensured through close cooperation with state-, entity-, cantonal-, and Brčko District-level authorities, as well as municipal authorities, CSWs, and public and non-public service providers.