government HOLDS REGULAR SESSION

ZAGREB, August 1 (Hina) - The project to put in order Land Registers and the Cadastre will be put on the agenda of strategic projects which the government will report on every two months, Prime Minister Ivica Racan announced on Thursday during a regular session of the government. Racan made the announcement during a discussion on a report on negotiations with the World Bank on concluding a loans contract for the project to put in order the Cadastre and Land Register. The loan is valued at 26 million euros with a repayment period of 15 years and a 5 year grace period and an interest rate of 4 per cent. The Croatian government urges the relevant services to immediately continue with works on the temporary border crossing at Hrvatska Kostajnica-Bosanska Kostajnica at a joint location and to prepare it for opening no later than the end of the month. Foreign Minister Tonino Picula stated that it was indisputable that the joint border crossing will be located on Croatian territory but he added that other, mostly technical details, need to be resolved with Bosnia in a partner like spirit. He believes that this could be resolved this month but no later than next month. The government adopted a draft of an annex to an agreement on the joint location of the border crossing at Hrvatska Kostajnica- Bosanska Kostajnica which was determined by a Combined Commission for Border Crossings. A decision on signing the annex will be made by the government once blue prints have been designed. Salaries in the Interior Ministry, Defence and Education in the first six months amounted to 50.6 million euros, which is more than planned, Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac pointed out in a report to the government on the budget in the first six months of this year. Crkvenac emphasised that in the first half of this year, all positive trends continued in the economy and the budget is basically being implemented as conceived. Economic growth in the first three months was 4.6 per cent and so the estimate of growth on an annual level has been corrected from 3.5 to 4.2 per cent, Crkvenac said, highlighting the stability of the exchange rate. He reported that the budget was being filled better than well. In the field of expenditure, the budget is a little lower with some breakthroughs, Crkvenac added. Because of the breakthrough in salaries in three ministries - Interior, Defence and Education - measures have already been taken and the new Defence Minister Zeljka Antunovic said that she would bring the ministry in line with budget provisions before the year's end. Ministries that overstepped plans were obliged by the government to propose measures by September 15 of how to keep within budget provisions. The government approved an additional 1.78 million euros for the fire protection programme and so this year about 3.15 million euros will be allocated all up for this purpose which is the same amount as last year. The government adopted a half-yearly report on fire protection measures. The government adopted a decision to distribute 3.42 million euros to finance science, health, cultural and health programmes in Croatia and Bosnia. (hina) sp lml