Coca-Cola has been operating in Bosnia and Herzegovina for 55 years. This important jubilee in 2024 is being celebrated with numerous activities. The fifth Study on the socio-economic impact of Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina was prepared, which explains and documents the contribution to the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the progress of society as a whole during the year 2023.
Coca-Cola directly creates 39 million KM of added value, while indirectly supporting another 264 million KM in the BiH economy . This means that every convertible brand created by Coca-Cola supports the creation of another 6.7 KM of added value in the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The total value of the direct and indirect influence of Coca-Cola in the form of salaries, taxes and profits in 2023 amounted to 303 million KM, which is 0.65% of the GDP of BiH . These are just some of the key findings of the Study on Socio-Economic Impact of Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2023.
The presentation of the results of the Study took place in front of representatives of relevant institutions, governmental and non-governmental sectors, representatives of the academy, business associations, the community, business partners and the media, at the Coca-Cola bottling plant in Hadžići.
In 2023, more than 120 million liters of drink will be produced
“We are proud that today we can present excellent results, but also the investments and influence we achieve thanks to continuous analyses, strategic decisions on priorities and partnerships that we devotedly nurture in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We are deeply integrated into the Bosnian society and dedicated to the development of the local community, where we produce 83% of products placed on the domestic market. Our most important investments are investments in our employees, in their growth and the conditions in which they thrive, in innovation within the bottling plant and in community projects. During the previous two years, Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina innovated and made strong strides and achieved results. We achieved a record result – production in 2023 amounted to more than 120 million liters of beverage. This demonstrates exceptional operational efficiency and continued growth. Our employees, customers, suppliers and partners are a key factor in everything we do and achieve. Our goal remains: to return every joint success to the community through the added value of our business” , said Dora Strezova Nikolova, General Director of Coca-Cola HBC Adria.
Prime Minister Nermin Nikšić greeted the participants on behalf of the Government of the Federation of BiH, after which he toured the facilities and the factory.
“I became convinced that the slogan “Coca-Cola is more Bosnian than you think” is really true. 271 employees and impressive production results make Coca Cola a leader in its industry. Considering all the projects they are investing in, they certainly deserve the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to be here and to show their respect. We expect them to continue this kind of development in the coming period, and we congratulate them on their success ,” said Nikšić.
Faruk Hadžić, an economic expert, referred to the socio-economic results of the company.
“The results are really fascinating. If we had 154 companies like Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina, then they would create the total GDP in our country, which today is created by over 10,000 companies. This shows a great socio-economic impact. How lucky we are to have such a level of productivity in other companies as well, because we would achieve the levels of economic growth and development that we lack and that we have been striving for all these years” , said Hadžić.
Investments in community projects
Coca-Cola’s investments in community projects in BiH between 2019 and 2023 amounted to 786,000 KM . In 2023 alone, Coca-Cola invested 174,000 KM in the community: 98,000 KM was invested in environmental protection projects, and 76,000 KM was invested in youth support projects.
After the presentation of the methodology and results of the Study, which explains Coca-Cola’s contribution to the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the impact of business in Bosnia and Herzegovina on the progress of society as a whole, a panel discussion was held on the topic of Investments and partnerships for socio-economic impact, in which the following participated: Amela Čengić, director of the Commercial Excellence Department of Coca-Cola HBC Adria, Faruk Hadžić, economic expert and analyst, Mirjana Vuković, director of Messer Tehnoplina, dr. Said Fazlagić, general secretary of the Olympic Committee of BiH and Haris Arnautović, head of Konzum’s marketing service in BiH and Goran Banjac, director of marketing and sales of MB Impex.
The participants of the panel discussion referred to the fact that investments and partnerships do not only bring financial effects, their influence is somewhat broader. They discussed what the business of Coca-Cola brings to the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina and how companies like Coca-Cola, through excellence in their own business processes, create opportunities to raise the level of excellence in their environment, and are an important factor of success in their value chain.
Continuous investments ensured numerous innovations in production aimed at sustainability and environmental protection, while investments in employees enabled the empowerment of a large number of experts who, through their influence, improved the business of Coca-Cola and other companies in the country. Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as one of the important employers in the country, directly employed 271 workers in 2023 .
Additionally, it supports almost 10,665 jobs in its value chain, which accounts for 0.8% of the total number of jobs in BiH. Coca-Cola is actively involved in Bosnian society through support of various local projects and partners, including the Sarajevo Film Festival, the BiH Olympic Committee and the 40th anniversary of the 1984 Olympic Games, the Euro, and through its own youth empowerment projects and sustainability initiatives, such as Recycle Me. Give me a new life.
Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina prepared and presented the first Study, which related to business in 2014, to the public in 2015, thus establishing and strengthening standards of transparency in business and reporting to the public about the impact of large companies on the economy and society. Then, in 2017, it produced the first domestic Sustainability Report based on the analysis of operations and impact in 2016. This is the fifth Study on the socio-economic impact of Coca-Cola in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
All studies and reports on sustainable business prepared so far are available for review and download at this link.
