In Bosnia and Herzegovina, one person throws away about 90 kg of food a year and waste from food that is burned in landfills represents 8-10% of greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, more than 20% of the population is poor, especially as a result of the impact of the economic and COVID-19 crisis. In the category of poor people, the number of those who are hungry is increasing.
The “Legal Framework for Philanthropy” program seeks to change the legal framework so that food donations are exempt from value added tax (VAT).
Therefore, after the formation of the team, at its second meeting, members of the thematic advocacy team 1 “Exemption of food donations from VAT” met on September 27, 2021 and jointly defined advocacy goals. Twenty-one (21) participants from the civil, public and private sectors agreed that the focus of their team was to amend the Rulebook on the Application of the Law on VAT, which defines the deficit, but to work on the adoption of legal acts on the safety of donated food. Adopting such an act would be the first step towards establishing a safe food donation chain.
The donation of food with a close expiration date and its exemption of VAT analyzed the main actors from the aspect of the support they can give to the achievement of this advocacy goal. The analysis of the levels of power and interests of individual actors mapped their needs and grouped them into four categories: (a) Empower and influence; (b) Keep informed; (c) Keep satisfied; (d) Monitor. The key actors in the process of changing the legal and fiscal framework regarding donation of food with a close expiration date and its exemption of VAT is the Indirect Taxation Authority. Regarding the establishment of the food donation chain, it is the Food Safety Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On this issue, it is necessary to upgrade the established system on food safety so that it includes food donations, based on European directives and positive comparative practices from the countries in the region.
Current public policies in Bosnia and Herzegovina in this area are not in line with the UN commitments made by Bosnia and Herzegovina (primarily the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement).
The program “Legal Framework for Philanthropy” is implemented by the Mozaik Foundation, Hastor Foundation, Network for Building Peace, Association Pomozi.ba, Trag Foundation and Catalyst Balkans, with the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development – USAID.
