STABILITY PACT TO FINANCE SMALL BUSINESS, REFUGEE RETURN IN CROATIA

ZAGREB, Sept 22 (Hina) - Most Stability Pact funds intended for Croatia will be directed into the development of small and medium businesses and refugee returns, a European Parliament member and head of its working group in charge of the Stability Pact for Southeast Europe, Joost Lagendijk, said in Zagreb on Saturday. A member of the Dutch Green Party, Lagendijk is participating in a three-day conference of the Balkan Green parties in the Croatian capital. The conference, which started Friday, focuses on the implementation of the Stability Pact and the situation in Macedonia. In every country of the region there are priority areas which are targeted with funds approved by the Stability Pact, and those areas in Croatia are small and medium entrepreneurship and refugee return, Lagendijk told reporters. The purpose of the conference is for the Green to exchange stands on individual topics and for European parliamentarians to assess the implementation of the Pact on the ground so as to be able to determine next year's budget, to be adopted in December, he said. The third, unofficial goal is to help the Balkans' dispersed Green movement unite and assume the political importance the Green option enjoys in Western Europe in the near future, he said. The Zagreb conference is the second meeting of the Balkan Green parties within a programme called GREEN EAST-WEST DIALOGUE, the first one having been held in Sofia. Participating in the event are around 30 party members from 12 countries, including, apart from the countries of the Balkans, Cyprus, Hungary, Romania and Turkey. (hina) rml