Dayton 2.0: Launching the Dialogue for Bosnia & Herzegovina’s Future

On March 27, 2025, the Institute for Development Impact convened a closed-door roundtable in Washington, D.C., marking the 30th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreement. The event brought together diplomats, academics, policy experts, and representatives from international missions and civil society for a candid, forward-looking discussion on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s persistent governance challenges. Held under the Chatham House Rule, the conversation focused on the legacy of Dayton and how its ethnic-based power-sharing system continues to stall progress and contribute to the current crisis. This roundtable was the inaugural event in a new I4DI-led dialogue series addressing contemporary democratic challenges in diverse geopolitical contexts.

The Core Issue: Dayton’s Role in Political Paralysis
A central theme of the discussion was the growing recognition that the Dayton framework, which ended the 1992–1995 war, now perpetuates political stagnation. Ismet Fatih Čančar, Fulbright Visiting Researcher at Johns Hopkins SAIS, presented his “Dayton 2.0 Roadmap,” outlining proposals to revisit the post-war arrangement and push toward a more functional constitutional order. He argued that the ethnic-based, power-sharing system entrenches divisions and enables nationalist leaders with veto power to obstruct reform. Participants widely agreed that this internal gridlock is reinforcing the ongoing crisis and has left Bosnia and Herzegovina’s governance structure ill-equipped to meet contemporary demands.

A Balanced Perspective: Internal Roots, External Amplifiers
The discussion also focused on the role of external actors who have exploited Bosnia’s vulnerabilities. Participants emphasized that these influences amplify, rather than originate, the country’s troubles. Foreign involvement across political, economic, and informational domains is seen as intensifying the structural flaws embedded in Dayton. Still, the prevailing consensus was clear—Bosnia’s challenges stem primarily from within, with external forces deepening the cracks. As one participant noted, “Bosnia’s struggles are rooted in its internal framework, but domestic and foreign actors alike have exploited its fractures. The priority lies in mending the core.”

Amid the discussion about challenges, the dialogue also surfaced possibilities for reform. Participants discussed the contours of a potential Euro-Atlantic action plan to support a pro-constitutional framework that reinforces democracy, sovereignty, and institutional integrity in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This shift from diagnosis to solution marked the roundtable as a springboard for future reform efforts.