Following the Dayton Accords, which ended the war in the former Yugoslavia in 1995, the international community called upon the World Bank and the European Commission to lead the reconstruction efforts in Bosnia. Since then, the Bank and the EC have worked with other organizations, in close collaboration with the High Representative's office, to show a visible peace dividend to the former warring parties.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is a lower middle-income country with an official gross national income per capita of US$2,440 in 2005 (GNI, Atlas method). Approximately 62 percent of GDP is created in the services sector, 29 percent in industry, and 9 percent in agriculture.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has made tremendous progress in post-conflict reconstruction, social integration, and state building. It is now working towards accession to the European Union (EU), membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO), and membership in NATO’s Partnership for Peace program.