Formal compliance without substantive participation: civil society and EU enlargement in Bosnia and Herzegovina

This article examines the role of civil society organizations (CSOs) following legal changes in 2017 regarding public consultations, focusing on the formal and substantive limitations to their participation in policymaking. Using the Joint Decision Trap model and Europeanization theory, the paper argues that despite external incentives and the institutionalization of public consultation mechanisms under EU pressure, civil society remains largely excluded from meaningful influence. The study is based primarily on interviews with 10 civil society and public institution representatives who actively participate in public consultations on the EU integration process, as well as data from the Ministry of Justice and entity parliaments. The findings of this article suggest that the complex institutional architecture of Bosnia, combined with the political practice of employing fast track procedures, creates conditions that exclude civil society from fulfilling its role as a meaningful contributor to enhancing transparency and improving proposed legislation.