In Trebinje from 19 to 21 March 2024. TAIEX workshop was held on EU policies and best practices in rural tourism in the context of rural development. The organizers of the workshop were the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management of the Republika Srpska.
The aim of this workshop is to gain insight into: 1. CAP policy 2023-27 - strategic, programmatic and legal framework, measures to support rural tourism in the context of rural development, 2. examples of good practice in the development of rural tourism in EU member states.
Rural tourism plays a significant role in the multifunctionality of rural areas, is an alternative form of tourist activity in less developed areas and introduces economic activity outside of agriculture. Rural tourism helps small villages and remote areas to maintain their traditional aspects associated with the rural landscape, cultural heritage and history. It can also offer added value to agricultural production activities on the farm by adding value to agricultural products, creating new markets and shortening value chains. According to the OECD classification, 81% of the total area and 61% of the total population in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) can be classified as rural. Rural tourism as a part of rural development is not well organized and it is a sector that must be improved in BiH, both on a legislative and practical level.
For this reason, experiences from Italy and the Republic of Croatia were presented at the workshop, and the presenters were:
In addition to experiences from the EU, the participants, who were representatives of the public and non-governmental sector from all levels and areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina, were presented with experiences on the development of rural tourism from Herzegovina.
Ivica Sivrić, director of REDAH, presented the development, methods and way of working in which REDAH has so far supported the development of rural areas, primarily through project activities, and emphasized that the basic model for success is the development of partnerships between the public, non-governmental, private and educational sectors , which he showed through the development of cycle tourism in Herzegovina and the ĆIRO cycle path during the last 12 years.
Slavica Samardžić presented experiences related to the Cheese and Honey Trail in Herzegovina and the Most Beautiful Villages of BiH projects.
