Central

Central level (BiH)

Ministry of civil affairs in charge of defining basic principles for:

• Coordination and consolidation of Entities’ plans;
• Definition of international strategy.
  

Responsible ministries/bodies

Ministry of civil affairs

Regional

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Federal Ministry of Education and Science (FBiH) is responsible for:

• Pre-school, elementary and secondary school education;
• Pedagogical standards, standards in the area of premises, equipment and teaching aids in preschool, elementary and secondary school education processes;
• Validation and equalisation of foreign school certificates and diplomas;
• Training and professional specialisation of the teaching staff;
• Textbooks for elementary and secondary schools;
• Research aimed at improving educational work and standards for university-level education;
• Pupils’ and students’ standard of living;
• Development of scientific activity;
• Development of scientific-researching institutions;
• Protection of copyrights and intellectual property;
• Coordination of scientific-research activities;
• Encouragement of fundamental applied research;
• Development of investment technologies and human resources in scientific-research field;
• Follow-up innovations;
• Development and improvement of technologies;
• Other tasks as laid down by the legislation governing this field.
  

Republika Srpska

Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republika Srpska is responsible for:

• Primary and secondary school (shared with the Municipalities);
• Higher education;
• Pre-school;
• Curricula for preschool, primary, secondary and higher education;
• Strategic planning at all levels of education;
• Establishment of standards and norms, and other requirements for educational work;
• Approval of textbooks;
• Approval of education and training of teachers and professional staff;
• Supervision of legality of work of educational institutions;
• Provision of financial and material resources for education institutions;
• Provision of education for students with special needs;
• Provision of lifelong learning;
• Creation of an enrolment policy in accordance with market needs;
• Pupils and student standards;
• Student associations;
• Scholarships for students in the Republic and abroad;
• Coordination of international students and academic staff exchange;
• Validation and equalisation of foreign school certificates and diplomas;
• Recognition of foreign higher education diplomas;
• Education of pupils and citizens that work abroad;
• Preparation of programmes of educational cooperation with other countries and international organisations;
• International agreements in the field of education;[1] 
• Scientific-research activities;
• Strategy of scientific development of the Republic;
• Promotion of basic, applied and development research and other forms of scientific research;
• Establishment and operation of research institutes;
• Promotion of scientific research;
• Provision of infrastructure for scientific research;
• Scientific publications;
• System of scientific information and communication;
• Participation in international scientific and research activities.
  

Intermediate level

Cantons (FBiH)

• Decisions relating to regulation and provisions;
• Pedagogical standards and norms;
• Criteria for financing of preschool educational institutions;
• Financing of the programmes of health protection of children;
• Harmonisation of needs for establishment of secondary schools in accordance with market needs;
• Curricula for preschool, primary and secondary education;
• Together with educational institutions, parents, pupils, NGOs and local self-government units promote and implement programmes and actions for prevention of abuse of children and young people against drug abuse, and other addictions, juvenile delinquency, and any other phenomena that threaten the health and lives of pupils
• Licensing of educational institutions;
• Register of educational institutions;
• Supervision of work and legality of work of educational institutions;
• Provides part of funds for implementation of scientific, artistic research and work of the higher education institutions. 

Responsible ministries/bodies

• Federal Ministry of Education and Science (FBiH)
• Ministry of Education and Culture of Republika Srpska

Local

FBiH’s Municipalities

• Preschool policy;
• Improvement of the preschool institutional network;
• Management and funding of public institutions for preschool
  education;
• Establishment, management, funding and improvement of institutions for primary education;
• Assessing the work of institutions and quality of services;
• Ensuring funds required for the improvement of their work and quality of services in accordance with the citizens’ needs and the local self-government units’ capabilities. 
  

Republika Srpska’s Municipalities

• Provision of conditions for preschool education;
• Preschool education;
• Primary and secondary school (shared with the Republika Srpska);
• Cost of stay of children in preschool facilities;
• Provision of conditions for maintenance, construction, adaptation equipping of preschool facilities which it has established;
• Initiative for establishment of a higher educational institution;
• Initiative for establishment of public primary and secondary schools;
• Funding of part of the expenses of the public primary and secondary schools in its region;
• Securing equipment and infrastructure for access and participation in the educational process of persons with special needs in primary and secondary schools;
• Promotion and implementation of programmes and actions to prevent the abuse of children and young people, human trafficking, against drug abuse, alcoholism, smoking and other addictions, juvenile delinquency, and any other phenomena that threaten the health and lives of pupils.

Sources:

Council of Ministers of BiH portal, Ministry of civil affairs

Government of the Republic of Srpska portal; Ministry of Education and Culture

FBiH Government portal, Federal Ministry of Education and Science

Constitution of Republika Srpska, Official Gazette of Republika Srpska, 6/92, 8/92, 15/92, 19/91, 21/92, 28/94, 8/96, 13/96, 15/96, 16/96 and 21/96.

Zakon o republickoj upravi [Law on Republic administration- unofficial translation], Article 25, Official Gazette of Republika Srpska 118/08.

Zakono Principima Lokalne Samouprave U Federaciji Bosne I Hercegovine [Law on the principles of local government in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina - unofficial translation]. “Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina”, 49/06, 51/09

Zakon o lokalnoj samoupravi [Law on local self-government – unofficial translation], Article 19, Official Gazette of Republika Srpska 101/04, further amendments published in official gazettes: 42/05, 118/05.

Zakon o visokom obrazovanju- Law on Amendment to the Law on Higher Education (Official Gazette of the Republic of Srpska, No. 44/15) 

ЗАКОН О ИЗМЈЕНАМА И ДОПУНАМА ЗАКОНА О СРЕДЊЕМ ОБРАЗОВАЊУ И ВАСПИТАЊУ [Law on amendments to the law on secondary education], April 10, 2014

Zakon o osnovnom obrazovanju i vaspitanju [Law on primary education], (Official Gazette of the Republic of Srpska, No. 55/2013)