ZAGREB, March 24 (Hina) - The World Bank vice-president for Europe and Central Asia, Shigeo Katsu, has said that his three-day visit to Croatia will enable him to make a strong case for the Bank to remain actively engaged in the
country.
ZAGREB, March 24 (Hina) - The World Bank vice-president for Europe and
Central Asia, Shigeo Katsu, has said that his three-day visit to
Croatia will enable him to make a strong case for the Bank to remain
actively engaged in the country.#L#
"However, the best case will be made by the government itself by the
reform agenda it continues and by its actions," a statement from the
World Bank's office in Croatia quoted Katsu as saying.
During his visit that ended on March 20, Katsu met a number of
Croatian state officials and visited Rijeka and Gospic. He said that
Croatia should be congratulated for the reforms that had been adopted
to prepare the country for the challenges of competition in an
integrated Europe.
"These challenges should not be understated. Further structural
reforms lie ahead, and my discussions with the government suggest that
there is a serious and ambitious agenda ahead. The key actions need to
be launched in the next six months to establish the momentum to catch
up to earlier reformers. The Bank and the government have a shared
view on the need to continue with the fiscal consolidation process in
order to address external vulnerability and low competitiveness of the
Croatian economy," Katsu said.
Katsu said that the World Bank was looking forward to cooperation with
the Croatian government in its efforts to promote conditions for
sustainable growth and development.
The World Bank has been actively cooperating with Croatia since the
early 1990s and has been providing support in post-war reconstruction
and structural reforms. Since Croatia joined the Bank in 1993, the
Bank has funded 22 projects, totalling over US1.2 billion with
disbursements of US700 million.
(Hina) vm