The Green Climate Fund has allocated USD 17.35 million grant for the energy efficiency project in Bosnia and Herzegovina aimed at upgrading public buildings. The project will also help switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources, create new jobs, reduce air pollution and protect the health of citizens.

The Scaling-up Investment in Low Carbon Public Buildings in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been implemented by the UN Development Program (UNDP) in partnership with relevant institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and institutions of its two entities, the Republic of Srpska (RS) and Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) . The project will be implemented in the next eight years, from 2018 to 2025.

Half of the grant will be allocated to the Republika Srpska and half to the Federation of BiH, while more than 90 percent of the funds will be invested directly in improving energy efficiency in public buildings.

At the project presentation last week in Sarajevo, the UNDP Resident Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina Sezin Sinanoglu said that the project should cover 430 public buildings. She noted that 70 percent of public buildings in the country were built more than 30 years ago, when energy efficiency was not taken into account, and that it is therefore necessary to upgrade them.

She said that the project will help improve living and working conditions for 150,000 citizens, including 80,000 women. She added that more than 5,600 jobs will be created within the project and more than 2,500 people trained in the field of sustainable energy management.

Sinanoglu pointed out that the implementation of energy efficiency measures will help reduce for greenhouse gas emissions by 2.02 million tons of CO2 equivalent.

Minister of Urban Planning, Construction and Ecology of Republic of Srpska Srebrenka Golić said that these are the first funds allocated by the Green Climate Fund to Bosnia and Herzegovina for upgrading energy efficiency in buildings.

She said that the buildings will be upgraded by replacing windows, and introducing thermal insulation, while in some cases the roof will be renovated or the heating system replaced.

Golić added that the software will be created to help keep record of savings. According to her, the funds that will be saved thanks to the energy efficiency measures, should be reinvested in refurbishment of new buildings.

She said that there are more than 800 educational buildings and more than 75 buildings in the public health sector in the RS that need to be refurbished.

Within the project Energy Efficiency that has been implemented in the RS, the refurbishment of 18 buildings, including 16 educational buildings and two hospitals, has been completed, while the works are ongoing on seven buildings.