Through the program of stimulation of citizens´ participation in monitoring of BIH Development Strategy (PRSP), at the beginning of year 2004 BOSPO has started to work with parliaments. Some of the recognized mechanisms for cooperation between citizens and parliaments are described below.

Public Discussions/Hearings
Public discussions/hearings could be defined as mechanism used by parliament´s commissions to collect information necessary for analyzing or creating new public politics. The members of parliament have opportunity to hear thoughts and opinions of experts and citizens about certain issues by public discussions/hearings.

By public discussions/hearings, parliamentarians and staff of expert services are informed about:
- Issues that were discussed by concrete proposal or draft of a law
- Measures that must be taken in order to improve proposed legal acts
- Public discussions determinate support intensity to the certain proposed law.

Public discussions/hearings give citizens opportunity to:
- To express their opinion about different issues
- To participate in process of creating positions about certain issues
- To assist in creation of public opinion about such measure, law or issue.

Constituency Offices
Parliamentarians are able to open offices in town of their residence in order to better represent their constituents. Parliamentarians would meet constituencies, individuals or groups in the offices and hear their ideas, problems and complains.

Constituency Offices are very useful both to citizens and parliamentarians.
It helps citizens:
- To contact member of the parliament and to ask for help
- To present their ideas and thoughts about different issues and politics
- To inform parliamentarians about community problems
- To learn more about resources and services of local government
- To access different legislations and acts

It helps parliamentarians:
To keep the contacts with their Constituency Office
- To become familiar to local community issues and problems
- To formulate questions when representing interests of constituents in Parliament
- To mobilize local community
- To build connection between citizens and Government
- To consider solving system issues by separate examples

BOSPO will in 2005 continue to work on informing, educating and organizing citizens´ to use described mechanisms.

WE INVITE ALL FORMAL AND INFORMAL GROUPS OF CITIZENS INTERESTED TO USE ABOVE MECHANISMS TO CONTACT BOSPO OFFICE!!!