Financial Management and Control and Internal Audit System in the Public Sector in BiH

Abstract

The introduction and implementation of finansijsko upravljanje i kontrola (FUK, financial management and control [FMC]) in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) aims to incorporate a modern public internal financial control (PIFC) system into traditional public resources management models. This area is one of the reform areas in which Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is obliged to harmonize the legislative framework and practice with the good practices and regulations recommended by the European Commission. The establishment and development of the PIFC are also an obligation of Bosnia and Herzegovina established by the Stabilization and Association Agreement between the European Community and the member states, of the one part, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, of the other part. The public internal financial control (PIFC) system focuses on enhancing transparency, financial discipline, and dedicated use of public resources, that is, transparent, economical, efficient, and effective management of public resources, and control of the use of those resources. The topic of this paper is “financial management and control in the public sector” where the aim is to show, through the conducted theoretical research, the level of achievement of the establishment of this system in public sector institutions in BiH. The European Union wants to direct all potential member countries towards development of internal controls in the use of their own resources, but also to create a control environment that would ensure the dedicated use of EU funds. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is no single legal framework in terms of a single law governing public internal financial controls. The contents of the applicable legal provisions at all three levels (BiH, FBiH, and Republic of Srpska [RS]) are largely congruent thanks to the Coordination Committee of Central Harmonization Units (CHJs) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, through which the harmonization of regulations and practices in the development of public internal financial controls is ensured.