The United Nations Mission to Bosnia (UNMIBH) called on international donors Monday for funds to help Bosnia's border force fight illegal migration through the country.
"The UNMIBH ... calls upon the international donor community, particularly western European countries, to provide the short-term funding necessary to get the (Bosnian) state border service up and running," a mission statement said.
Four state border units were established with UN help last year, including one deployed at Sarajevo airport, suspected as the most often used migration route in the country.
Eight more units are to be set up within the next two months, enabling the border service to control 65 percent of Bosnia's frontiers, the statement added.
Bosnia's porous boundaries and absence of a fully established border force have made it hard to stem illegal immigration through the country.
In 2000, an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 immigrants moved through Bosnia on their way to western Europe, the statement said.