National program for youth volunteering

There is no national program for youth volunteering in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Funding

Not applicable. 

Characteristics of youth volunteering

As of 2024–2025, Bosnia and Herzegovina has no new nationally representative quantitative research specifically measuring youth volunteering comparable to the National Youth Survey 2022. More recent studies focus on broader youth participation and civic engagement, identifying volunteering as a potential but underdeveloped form of youth involvement.

According to the National Youth Survey in Bosnia and Herzegovina 2022, volunteering remains a limited but identifiable form of civic engagement among young people aged 15–30. The survey shows that approximately 14% of young people reported volunteering for charitable purposes in the 12 months preceding the survey, while 27% reported donating money or goods for humanitarian causes, indicating a higher prevalence of philanthropic engagement compared to formal volunteering. 

A significant entity-level difference is evident. Philanthropic giving and volunteering are more common among youth from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina than among youth from Republika Srpska. This finding suggests unequal access to volunteering opportunities and differences in civic participation patterns across entities 

In terms of broader civic participation, around one-third of young people (approximately 33%) participated in at least one civic activity in the year prior to the survey. However, volunteering represents only a minor share within this broader category of civic engagement, confirming that structured volunteering is not yet a dominant or mainstream form of youth participation in Bosnia and Herzegovina 

Under the UNFPA Survey on Youth Emigration from Bosnia and Herzegovina (Research Report, August 2021), respondents have divided opinions about the willingness of young people to volunteer and contribute to their local community and society. Around 38% agreed or strongly agreed that young people have a strong desire to volunteer and contribute to society, 28% were unsure, while 34% believe that young people are not willing to dedicate their time to it.

According to the results, there is a statistically significant higher percentage of respondents aged 18–19 (15%) and 20–24 (13%) who volunteered in civil society/non-governmental organizations in the past year, compared to respondents aged 25–29 (9%).

No statistically significant difference was found among different age groups of the youth regarding volunteering to help others.

Finally, a statistically significantly higher percentage of older respondents aged 20–24 (49%) and 25–29 (51%) donated money for charitable purposes in the past twelve months, compared to respondents aged 18–19 (41%).

As the results show, young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina express a low level of interest in political and civic engagement, and these findings are consistent with previous research on this issue. As stated in the Bosnia and Herzegovina Youth Study 2018/2019, the reluctance toward politics and political action is the result of multiple factors, namely, democratic transition, lagging economic development, and the dominance of political elites collectively create a behavioral pattern characterized by disengagement. This disengagement represents a form of protest and revolt against a political system that is perceived as not taking the future of young people into account.

According to the Socio-economic Perceptions of Young People in Bosnia and Herzegovina published by UNDP Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2017, the areas that respondents who did volunteer work most often list include charity work, humanitarian, and development assistance (27.7%), education and training (21.1%), and culture and arts (18.7%). Men are more likely than women to state that they volunteered in sports (10.4% - 2.2%) while respondents holding university degrees are more likely to state that they volunteered in the domain of education or training when compared to those who completed secondary education (34.3% vs. 13.1%).

In comparison with respondents from EU, young people from Bosnia and Herzegovina are more likely to state that they volunteered in culture and arts (18.7% vs. 15% in EU). On the other hand, young people from the EU are more likely to state that they volunteered in other areas. More significant differences are observed in the animal welfare (9% in EU vs. 1.8% in Bosnia and Herzegovina), politics (8% EU vs. 1.8% Bosnia and Herzegovina), and religion (12% EU vs. 0.6% Bosnia and Herzegovina).

Volunteering of youth in Bosnia and Herzegovina is defined by volunteering laws adopted at the level of two entities (Republika Srpska and Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina) and at the level of Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Other laws and regulations

It is important to mention other laws and regulations addressing volunteering:

• Republika Srpska Law on University Education defines possibilities to obtain the ECTS points through volunteering. Therefore, all public universities and certain number of private universities drafted and adopted the Rules and Procedures on students’ volunteering activities for the purposes of obtaining the ECTS points through volunteering.

• Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Youth Law defines that one of its goals is strengthening youth volunteering.

• Brčko District Youth Law defines that one of the obligations of youth organizations is the affirmation of youth volunteering.

Support to young volunteers

The legal frameworks on volunteering in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, and the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina all clearly distinguish volunteering from paid employment. In all three jurisdictions, volunteering is defined as unpaid engagement and does not constitute an employment relationship.

At the same time, all three laws allow reimbursement of costs incurred during volunteering, including transportation and food expenses, as well as accommodation and other necessary costs related to volunteer activities. These reimbursements are explicitly defined as cost compensation and not as remuneration for work.

Differences exist in how these reimbursements are regulated. In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the law allows reimbursement of actual, documented expenses, without prescribing a specific financial ceiling. In contrast, the laws in Republika Srpska and the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina introduce quantitative limits, linking the reimbursement of monthly food and transportation costs to a percentage of the average net salary. In Republika Srpska, this limit is explicitly set at up to 30% of the average net salary, while the Brcko District applies a similar approach based on district-level statistical data.

In all cases, these reimbursements are designed to enable participation in volunteering activities and do not transform volunteering into paid work. 

Target groups

Several national and international initiatives in the field of youth volunteering identify specific target groups within the youth population. These groups often include young people in transition between education and employment, unemployed youth, and those without formal qualifications.​

For instance, the Young Change Makers program by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) focuses on empowering youth with fewer opportunities and those lacking prior experience in civic activism. This initiative aims to build resilience by enhancing skills and supporting crucial partnerships, thereby promoting interactive participation of youth in community-building work.​

Similarly, the Youth Response project by the Association "Young Volunteers" in Visoko targets young people to take leadership positions in society. The project brought together over 300 direct participants, exceeding the planned number of beneficiaries. It focused on empowering youth through various activities, including round tables and volunteer actions, to initiate changes in their communities. ​

These initiatives demonstrate a concerted effort to engage specific segments of the youth population in voluntary activities, aiming to foster civic engagement and community development.