PARLIAMENT DEBATES DRAFT NATIONAL FAMILY POLICY

ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - Labour and Social Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic outlined in parliament on Friday a draft national family policy, which aims to harmonise work and family, i.e. employ both parents to improve the quality of family life. #L# The minister also presented an analysis of the implementation of the National Demographic Development Programme. Bearing in mind the changes in the structure of the family over the past decade, the family policy will focus on a family model with two breadwinners, encourage the development of services for the family, as well as models of financial assistance, said Vidovic. He added these family policy principles had been adjusted to recommendations from international institutions. The basic principles refer to supporting the most destitute families, employing both parents, and improving the cooperation between families and all competent bodies and institutions, said the minister. The implementation of the National Demographic Development Programme from 1996 indicates that negative population trends in Croatia are continuing, especially due to a 2.6 percent population drop over the last decade. Natural population growth recorded a negative rate for the first time in the 1990s, a decade which registered 55,000 more deaths than births, as well as a seriously disrupted age structure: the number of people under 14 dropped from 19.8 percent in 1991 to 17.5 percent in 2001. Vidovic said the fertility and mortality rates were satisfactory: 10.7 per thousand children under one died in 1990, as against 7.7 per thousand in 2000. The number of families and marriages without children and single households has grown as well, while the number of marriages is dropping. The number of divorces grew from 19.6 to 20.4 percent over the last decade, while some five percent of children are born out of wedlock. In Slovenia the latter figure is 30 percent. (hina) ha sb