BrÃÂko District (), officially the BrÃÂko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina (), is a self-governing administrative unit in north-eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Officially a condominium of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska, it was formed in 1999 to reflect the multi-ethnic nature of BrÃÂko and the surrounding areas and their special status within the newly independent Bosnia and Herzegovina. In reality, it functions as a local self-government area, much like the other municipalities in the country. The seat of the district is the city of BrÃÂko.
The BrÃÂko District was established after an arbitration process undertaken by the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the Dayton Peace Accords, however, the process could only arbitrate the disputed portion of the Inter-Entity Boundary Line (IEBL). The BrÃÂko District was formed of the entire territory of the former BrÃÂko municipality, of which 48% (including BrÃÂko city) was in the newly formed Republika Srpska, while 52% was in the old Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
BrÃÂko was the only element in the Dayton Peace Agreement that was not finalized at the time. The arbitration agreement was later finalized in March 1999, resulting in a "district" that was to be administrated by an American BrÃÂko International Supervisor. Since 2006, Principal Deputy High Representative has taken over the Brcko supervisor role.
In the 1990s, the Arizona Market was created at the intersection of the IFOR north-south "Arizona" road and the eastâÂÂwest Posavina Corridor roads, bordering today's district, and became a commercial success.
The first BrÃÂko International Supervisor arrived in April 1997. Up to that time, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) had a modest office headed by Randolph Hampton. During the interim time before the District of BrÃÂko could be represented post-arbitration agreement, local elections were held, and humanitarian relief was provided with cooperation from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and ECHO. The District became known as a center for different state-building programs run by foreign governments, particularly the United States.
In 2006, under the Supervisory Order, all "Entity legislation in BrÃÂko District and the IEBL" was abolished. The ruling made by the BrÃÂko Supervisor Susan Johnson abolished all Entity Laws in the District, as well as the Entity Border Line. The ruling made the Laws of the District paramount within the District, and the Laws of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina, both Federation and Serb Republic, including the laws of the former Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ceased to have legal effect there.
Following a Peace Implementation Council (PIC) meeting on 23 May 2012, it was decided to suspend, not terminate, the mandate of the BrÃÂko International Supervisor. The BrÃÂko Arbitral Tribunal, together with the suspended BrÃÂko Supervision, continues to exist. Also in 2012, the legislature of Bosnia and Herzegovina passed a law that required citizens to declare which entity (Federation or Republika Srpska) they belonged to before they could vote in national elections. This was problematic in BrÃÂko District as many people did not wish to belong to either.
The government of Republika Srpska resumed operation in the district in 2012. Despite actions of the government of Republika Srpska, change of the autonomous status of BrÃÂko District would require a change in the constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an event unlikely to occur.
BrÃÂko District comprises 1% of the land area of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is home to 2.37% of the country's total population.
The ethnic composition of BrÃÂko District:
There are 31 seats in the Assembly of the BrÃÂko District. The seats are divided as follows as of 2024: