Institutionalization in Yugoslavia

In socialist Yugoslavia, disability welfare was largely organized through residential institutions rather than community-based support. The national social policy supported the creation of many long-stay residential institutions, which operated between 1948 and the mid-1970s. These facilities neglected the autonomy and dignity of people with disabilities. Many of these large residential institutions were run in rural areas, separating people with disabilities from their community. Following the dissolution of Yugoslavia in 1991, its successor states faced the challenge of reforming disability policy and shifting from institutional care toward community-based support. All have since ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). This international treaty outlines the states’ responsibilities to ensure that persons with disabilities are able to fully exercise their rights as any other person. Among these rights is the right to live independently and within a community, expressed in Article 19.

Gaps in Slovenian Deinstitutionalization

Slovenia was among the first to work towards deinstitutionalization while still being part of Yugoslavia in the mid-1980s. The country later began to rapidly develop community services for those with psychosocial disabilities, largely through the NGO sector in the early 1990s. There are an estimated 115,000 persons with disabilities in Slovenia today, making up 5.4% of the country’s population. Many of them are eligible for employment benefits and social assistance to allow for independent living. However, these systems have been criticized by both persons with disabilities and employers as inefficient. Social home care illustrates these shortcomings. Although more than 12,000 people rely on the service, access varies considerably across regions because of differences in availability and affordability. This constitutes a main reason as to why many people remain institutionalized in Slovenia.

Recent Reform in Slovenia

State institutions have been more strongly regulated by the multitude of legal frameworks which the country has joined, such as the European Convention on Human Rights in 1994, and the CRPD in 2008. The Slovenian government has put forth several initiatives to improve the lives of persons with disabilities, notably through the Slovenian Strategy for Deinstitutionalization in Social Welfare in 2024. This reform plan aims to shift care for persons with disabilities from institutions to community-centered care. In alignment with this initiative, The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development approved EU funding of over 12 million euros in 2025. This amount is allocated for services which sustain independent living of persons with disabilities and improve community-based services while preventing institutionalization. Although it is too early to assess the impact of these reforms, more than 4,500 people with mental disabilities continue to live in residential social care institutions, underscoring the need for effective implementation and sustained investment in community-based services.

Struggle for Care in Post-War Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)

According to the Borgen Project and the Regional Cooperation Councill, 569,000 persons with disabilities live in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This accounts for about 18% of the total population. This proportion is notably higher than in Slovenia, reflecting in part the lasting impact of the Bosnian War, which left thousands with life-long physical and psychosocial disabilities amidst a decimated welfare system. The 1995 Dayton Peace Accords ended the war by establishing Bosnia and Herzegovina as a state composed of two autonomous entities. While this agreement brought a lasting end of the armed conflict to the area, this split has made reconstruction and following an international legal framework difficult. This has proved particularly true in the process of deinstitutionalization. Although post-war reforms sought to expand disability services and community-based care alongside broader healthcare reconstruction, many persons with disabilities continue to be placed in residential institutions. Community support, therapeutic assistance, and state funding remain inadequate, limiting opportunities for independent living.

Institutional Abuses in BiH

In 2019, thousands of people across Bosnia and Herzegovina protested following the release of photos which showed children with special needs tied to radiators and beds. These photos were taken at the state-run Pazarić Institute, which serves over 300 patients with disabilities. Following this, the Municipal Court in Sarajevo sentenced three former directors of the Institute to a combined total of 13.5 years in prison for neglect and abuse. However, the protests did not lead to the wider institutional reforms that many demonstrators had called for. In 2023, a video emerged showing a young resident being abused by a staff member at the same institution. The incident reinforced concerns that conditions had not been substantially improved. This footage prompted further public outcry regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina’s failure to improve conditions of state-run institutions. Although BiH introduced its Strategy of Deinstitutionalisation and Transformation of the Social Protection System (2014-2020) to expand community-based services and reduce reliance on institutional care, its implementation has been uneven. Many of the reforms envisioned by the strategy are yet to be realized.

Different Paces of Advancement, Remaining Challenges

Deinstitutionalization has been more consistently advanced in Slovenia, with the country’s EU membership having been instrumental in this process. EU membership has allowed the country access to EU cohesion funds, making initiatives such the Slovenian Strategy for Deinstitutionalization in Social Welfare possible. The GDP per capita of candidate country Bosnia and Herzegovina is roughly one quarter of that of Slovenia, demonstrating greater hurdles in providing government assistance and public services. These economic constraints do not however diminish the state’s responsibility to prevent abuse and hold institutions accountable for violations of the rights of people with disabilities. Both countries remain bound by international legal obligations to expand community-based care and uphold the autonomy and dignity of persons with disabilities. Despite recent reforms, progress has been inconsistent, and significant gaps remain in implementing these commitments.