ROMANIJA HOUSE OFFICIALLY OPENED

SOKOLAC, SEPTEMBER 2 /SRNA/ - The Romanija House, worth around BAM 350,000, was officially opened in Sokolac today, a facility designed as a key centre for rural development and the branding of Romanija.

Staša Košarac, Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations in the Council of Ministers, said that this was a significant project, noting that around six million litres of milk and more than 30 tonnes of honey are produced in the Sokolac area annually. “We want to promote domestic production and establish these products in European markets,” Košarac said. He added that, given the large number of beehives in the Sokolac area, work would begin in the coming period on establishing an apiary centre near the Romanija House. “We have the resources, the need and the will to do this,” Košarac stressed. He announced that Italy’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs would also visit the Romanija House next week. Following the opening, Sokolac Mayor Strahinja Bašević presented the products to diplomatic and political representatives who attended the opening of the Romanija House. He said the idea for the project originated in the office of the Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations in the Council of Ministers as a comprehensive effort to support farmers in the region. “The Romanija House will bring production together under one roof and provide security for agricultural producers,” Bašević stressed. He added that a mini-dairy would also be built as part of the Romanija House in the coming period. Riccardo Rigelli, First Secretary at the Embassy of Italy in BiH, said that three initiatives worth around EUR 8 million are currently under way in BiH. The Romanija House project was implemented in partnership between the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations and the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari. The facility was built as part of the Transition to Green and Healthy Food Production in BiH project, supported by the Government of Italy.