ag;
the remainder of the flag is medium blue with seven full five-pointed
white stars and two half stars top and bottom along the hypotenuse of
the triangle

Government - note: The Dayton Agreement, signed in Paris on 14 December
1995, retained Bosnia and Herzegovina's exterior border and created a
joint multi-ethnic and democratic government. This national government -
based on proportional representation similar to that which existed in the
former socialist regime - is charged with conducting foreign, economic,
and fiscal policy. The Dayton Agreement also recognized a second tier of
government, comprised of two entities - a joint Bosniak/Croat Federation
of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska (RS)
- each presiding over roughly one-half the territory. The Federation
and RS governments are charged with overseeing internal functions. The
Bosniak/Croat Federation is further divided into 10 cantons. The Dayton
Agreement established the Office of the High Representative (OHR) to
oversee the implementation of the civilian aspects of the agreement. About
250 international and 450 local staff members are employed by the OHR.

Economy Bosnia and Herzegovina

Economy - overview: Bosnia and Herzegovina ranked next to The Former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia as the poorest republic in the old
Yugoslav federation. Although agriculture is almost all in private
hands, farms are small and inefficient, and the republic traditionally
is a net importer of food. Industry has been greatly overstaffed,
one reflection of the socialist economic structure of Yugoslavia. TITO
had pushed the development of military industries in the republic with
the result that Bosnia hosted a large share of Yugoslavia's defense
plants. The bitter interethnic warfare in Bosnia caused production
to plummet by 80% from 1990 to 1995, unemployment to soar, and human
misery to multiply. With an uneasy peace in place, output recovered
in 1996-99 at high percentage rates from a low base; but output growth
slowed in 2000 and 2001. GDP remains far below the 1990 level. Economic
data are of limited use because, although both entities issue figures,
national-level statistics are limited. Moreover, official data do not
capture the large share of activity that occurs on the black market. The
marka - the national currency introduced in 1998 - is now pegged to the
euro, and the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina has dramatically
increased i