This week marks the 30th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Accords, which ended the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina – a conflict that killed around 100,000 people, displaced half the population, and devastated the country.

In this video, Crisis Group’s Consulting Senior Analyst for the Balkans, Marko Prelec, explains how Dayton rebuilt a shattered state without a military defeat, creating institutions, frameworks for reconstruction, and international oversight. But the Accord also had consequences: ethnic-based political representation and a long-lasting international role that limits local ownership.

Thirty years on, Bosnia’s democracy remains fragile. Dayton shows the challenges of post-conflict state-building and the importance of security, international support, and local governance capacity.