Previously a constituent republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina proclaimed independence in March 1992. This triggered a three-year conflict during which the three ethnic groups were at war with each other in varying alliances. The Dayton Peace Agreement, signed on 21 November 1995, put an official end to the fighting.

The Dayton Agreement endorsed the principle that Bosnia and Herzegovina would remain a single state within existing borders. It divided the country into two entities and a district: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Federation), populated mainly by Bosniaks and Croats and comprising 51 per cent of the country; the Republika Srpska (RS), with a predominantly Serb population, holding 49 per cent of the territory; and District Brčko.

The political framework of Bosnia and Herzegovina is based on a parliamentary representative democracy. The Dayton Peace Agreement, signed on November 1995, put an end to a 1992 – 1995 war and set up the Presidential system in Bosnia and Herzegovina as a three-person rotating Presidency, comprising two members from the Federation (one Croat and one Bosniak) and one Serb member from the Republika Srpska. All three members are elected for a four-year term. The Presidency is responsible for executing decisions of the parliamentary assembly, foreign policy, the appointment of ambassadors, international treaties and coordination with international and non-governmental organisations. There is also a Council of Ministers, as well a Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina comprised of a House of Representatives and a House of People, and the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Entity of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is comprised of cantons (which are represented by 10 governments with all related governing bodies and canton courts), whereas the Republika Srpska is a centralized government with local authorities/municipalities.

Local short form: BiH
Conventional long form: Bosnia and Herzegovina
Government type: Parliamentary Representative Democracy
Capital: Sarajevo
Administrative divisions: Two entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Srspka and District Brčko
Independence: 1 March 1992
Constitution: Signed in December 1995 as the Annex 4 of the Dayton Peace Agreement
Legal system:  

Based on Civil Law System. The legal system is established in line with the Dayton Peace Accord and consists of Constitutional Court with 9 members. There are also entity supreme courts, as well as canton courts and municipality courts in the Federation and the municipality and district courts in the Republika Srpska.

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Elections: Last held in October 2014(next to be held in October 2018)
Major Political Parties: Stranka demokratske akcije (SDA)
Savez za bolju budućnost (SBB)
Savez nezavisnih socijaldemokrata (SNSD)
Srpska demokratska stranka (SDS)
Hrvatska demokratska zajednica Bosne i Hercegovine (HDZ BIH)
Hrvatska demokratska zajednica 1990 (HDZ 1990)
Demokratska fronta (DF)
Socijaldemokratka partija (SDP)
Executive branch:
Presidents Bakir Izetbegović, Dragan Čović and Mladen Ivanić (Tripartite Presidential System)
 

Head of Government:

 

Denis Zvizdić, Council of Ministers

 

Ministries:

Igor Crnadak – Minister of Foreign Affairs
Dragan Mektić – Minister of Security
Josip Grubeša – Minister of Justice
Mirko Šarović – Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations
Ismir Jusko – Minister of Communications and Traffic
Semiha Borovac – Minister of Human Rights and Refugees
Adil Osmanović – Minister of Civil Affairs