Throughout 2022, 1,234 weapons in the illegal possession of citizens, 49,889 pieces of ammunition and 31 pieces of land mines explosives and 10.8 kilograms of explosives were confiscated in the country, according to the data of the Coordination Board for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In 2022, 2,490 weapons and weapon parts were destroyed in the “Ilijas” ironworks. The MUP of Central Bosnia Canton independently destroyed 104 weapons and 15 ammunition containers.

Since 2016, a total of around 25,000 pieces and parts of weapons have been destroyed through these activities. This is the result of the successful work of all police agencies in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the fight against illegal arms trade, according to the Coordination Board.

At a summit of the countries of the Western Balkans,

In 2018, Western Balkans countries adopted a Roadmap for a sustainable solution to combating the illegal possession, abuse and trade of small arms and light weapons in the region until 2024. The road map defines clear goals and measures for strengthening control over weapons through the prevention, investigation and prosecution of illegal trafficking. This regional document is compatible with the BiH Strategy and in the fight against illegal arms trade, it brings together many international organizations such as UNDP, SEESAC, UNODC, OSCE and others.

At the state level, there is a Strategy for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) and it has been in continuity since 2006. The last one was adopted for the period 2021-2024 and was adopted by the Council of Ministers of BiH at its 28th session in 2021. However, all operational activities to collect illegal weapons are conducted by interior ministries at lower government levels.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, 12 laws on weapons are in force, which are partially aligned with EU Directive 555/2021. Currently, the Law on Weapons and Ammunition of the Una Sana Canton is the most harmonized and serves as a model for harmonization in other cantons, Brcko District and the country’s Republika Srpska (RS) entity.