Sarajevo, 4 May 2012 – A Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in police education and training was signed today in Sarajevo by the Directors of Agency for Education and Professional Training in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Branko Vukoja, Police Academy of the Federal Ministry of Interior, Taib Spahić and Administration for Police Education of Republika Srpska Ministry of Interior, Mile Šikman.

Director Vukoja emphasised that this document paves the way for future closer cooperation, whichin particular pertains to the harmonisation of curricula, exchange of experiences and lecturers as well as possibilities for joint training programmes. “All of these activities aim at improving the quality of police education, which will ultimately contribute to strengthening police structures, operational capacities and thus the overall security situation in BiH.“

Reminding that the High School of internal affairs is an associate member of the Banja Luka University, and the only institution of this kind in BiH which has both a police and educational character, Director Šikman emphasised that the graduates of this school are sought after by all agencies in BIH. “We are therefore prepared to work on the exchange of experiences, mutual contacts and the implementation of scientific projects. Further cooperation will improve the education system because the three institutions together can achieve better results than working on their own. In this way we will contribute to the European integration and make our European path easier.“

Focusing on the benefits of harmonised curricula, Director Spahić noted they will contribute to uniform police service to the citizens across the country. ”In the long term, this form of cooperation will allow BiH police agencies to address global, regional and local security challenges more effectively and thereby contribute to BiH's Euro-Atlantic integration.“ 

The Head of EU Police Mission Commissioner Stefan Feller noted that today’s signing ceremony marks the beginning of a very important chapter in improving police education. “This will undoubtedly introduce a new quality into the police. Cooperation between training institutions is a very important step for effective assistance to policing in BiH. It significantly increases the ability of training and education institutions contributing to improving the capacity of police agencies, by providing the most actual and accurate training that is needed. The Mission is proud of having been a part of this endeavour.“