Bosnia and Herzegovina: Environmental and social study for Prenj motorway tunnel needs to tackle the elephants in the room
July 2, 2024
The environmental and social impact assessment for the planned Prenj tunnel on the Corridor Vc motorway provides a wealth of details on some issues, but fundamental questions remain, particularly on the Bijela canyon Emerald site near Konjic and the Podgorani area near Mostar.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Motorway-affected residents submit complaint to the UN
June 24, 2024
A group of people whose land and houses are threatened by the EU-funded planned Corridor Vc (1) motorway south of Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina have submitted a complaint to the United Nations Human Rights Council (2).
Open days on the Corridor Vc Prenj tunnel: a promising new public engagement tool?
June 14, 2024
Last week, JP Autoceste and the EBRD held three open days on the planned Prenj tunnel, part of the 330-kilometre Corridor Vc motorway in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Bankwatch went along to see what this new format offers and how it works in practice.
The Corridor Vc motorway in Bosnia and Herzegovina: A decisive test for EU standards
April 5, 2024
Based on a March 2024 site visit, this report examines two planned sections of the motorway– from Mostar South to the Kvanj Tunnel and from Konjic to Mostar, through the iconic Prenj mountain. It presents updated findings and underlines that it is crucial for the European Commission, EIB and EBRD to ensure that the route south of Mostar and via Prenj is re-examined and publicly consulted if they want to avoid many more years of delay.
Mostar locals continue to resist Corridor Vc routing amid new tunnel loan talks
March 19, 2024
On 11-13 March a Bankwatch team visited Mostar and the nearby villages of Kosor, Ortiješ and Malo Polje. The team met with more than 25 landowners from the three villages, visited vineyards in Ortiješ, nearby construction sites on the Corridor Vc, and the Podveležje ridge. They discussed with local people the developments in the valley, ongoing legal action and the results of complaints at the EBRD’s accountability mechanism.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Corridor Vc motorway south of Mostar needs rerouting to meet EBRD and EU standards
February 16, 2024
A European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) compliance review has vindicated Mostar complainants affected by the Corridor Vc in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Now the Federation of BIH government, with support from the EU and European public banks, must ensure effective remedy.
Corridor Vc subsection under OLAF investigation, a cautionary tale for public banks
October 26, 2022
In August, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) opened an investigation into potential fraud and corruption around the Bosnia and …
Open letter to the EBRD and JP Autoceste about the legality of the project-level Spatial Plan of 2017 for the Corridor Vc in the Hercegovina-Neretva Canton
February 21, 2022
The letter requests that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development not sign the loan agreement for the Corridor Vc motorway subsections Mostar North – Mostar South until additional biodiversity baseline studies for the subsection tunnel Kvanj – Buna and alternative route assessments are completed. The letter also presents the conclusions of the discrimination complaint filed by war returnees, as well as the ramifications for the Bank’s rules on vulnerable groups. It asserts that signing the loan for the subsection Mostar North and South should be delayed until additional biodiversity studies and careful consideration of route alternatives are completed, particularly since the Bank’s independent accountability mechanism is about to finalize its recommendations to management in the first half of 2022.
Complaints on controversial motorway project in Bosnia and Herzegovina trigger EBRD inquiry as forced expropriations begin in South Mostar
April 27, 2021
Local residents south of Mostar fear they could be uprooted by a motorway project financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). With forced expropriations underway, the Bank’s accountability mechanism has now announced it will investigate these concerns.
