ZAGREB, Oct 26 (Hina) - Croatian Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac presented the basic principles of a draft state budget for 2002 at a news conference on Friday.
ZAGREB, Oct 26 (Hina) - Croatian Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac
presented the basic principles of a draft state budget for 2002 at a
news conference on Friday.#L#
The economic growth in 2001 will amount to 4.5 percent and in 2002
reach 3.5 percent in the worst case scenario, the minister told
reporters.
The basic principles for the draft 2002 budget are decreasing the
overall and current deficit, lower debits, a concrete and stronger
support to development and employment, investing privatisation
revenue into employment and development and no longer into
budgetary expenditure, further raducing state administration, and
curbing grey economy.
The overall budget deficit would thus drop from the current 5.3 to
4.25 percent of Gross National Product (GNP) in 2002, and 1.25
percent in 2003. Croatia would thus become a country with organised
public finances, Crkvenac said, added the deficit in the EU would
amount to an average two percent of GNP.
Plans include reducing the current budget deficit from this year's
4.5 billion kuna (about $0.55 billion) to 1.1 billion (S$0.13
billion) in 2002. Crkvenac also said that Croatia's overall debt
this year, on foreign and domestic markets, amounted to 11.7
billion kuna (US$1.4 billion), while in 2002 the country is
expected to incur a 8.9 billion kuna (US$1.08 billion) debt.
Commenting on the debt, Crkvenac said that since 1999 the overall
debt has increased from 46 to 66 billion kuna.
Crkvenac also presented data and projections on changes in the
state of the public debt, this year 4.5 and next 2.7 billion kuna,
and its settlement, 11.1 billion kuna this year and 9.7 billion in
2002.
The minister said the draft budget will be accompanied by a series
of documents, including a bill on the settlement of state claims. In
the past decade, these claims have reached 21.5 billion kuna. The
state has frozen about 19,500 out of more than 71,000 companies over
unpaid taxes, customs, contributions, etc. These firms will be
offered to settle their commitments with a discount, to reprogram
them, or clear them with other commitments.
US$1 = 8.2 kuna
(hina) it/ha sb