ZAGREB, Jan 29(Hina) - Stopping negative demographic trends is one of the most important political and national issues, Deputy Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor said in parliament on Thursday while introducing a set of amendments aimed at
reintroducing three-year maternity leave for mothers of twins and those who give birth to the third and every next child.
ZAGREB, Jan 29(Hina) - Stopping negative demographic trends is one of
the most important political and national issues, Deputy Prime
Minister Jadranka Kosor said in parliament on Thursday while
introducing a set of amendments aimed at reintroducing three-year
maternity leave for mothers of twins and those who give birth to the
third and every next child.#L#
Introducing the amendments to the laws on labour, maternity leave and
health insurance, the Minister of Family and War Veterans' Affairs and
Inter-Generation Solidarity presented data collected by the UN and
Croatian demographers which read that 2003 was the first in the last
220 years in which the number of newborn children was below 40,000,
while the number of people who died exceeded 50,000.
This means that in 30 years' time Croatia will lack labour and in 50
years its population will decrease by one million, the minister
warned.
The reintroduction of three-year maternity leave is an option and not
an obligation, she said, adding that the proposed measure would reduce
the number of children on waiting lists for day care centres and
create the possibility of temporary employment for mothers on
three-year maternity leave.
Kosor said the government would soon set up a council for the
demographic policy, which is expected to draw up a long-term project
with measures aimed at stopping the negative demographic trends.
(Hina) rml