CRO FINANCE MINISTER; BUDGET FOR 2000 TO AMOUNT TO DM11.25 BILLION TO DM11.5 BILLION

ZAGREB, Feb 21 (Hina) - Croatian Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac on Monday said that the state budget for this year would amount to DM11.25 billion to DM11.5 billion. In his opinion, it is good that the budget maintained at this level. In nominal value, this is 5 percent less, and effectively, the budget is 12 percent smaller that it was in 1999, Crkvenac said at the opening of the first session of the Council of Advisors for Economy. The Council gathers about 50 experts from universities, 25 eminent economists and bankers, and about 20 experts from abroad, including Croatian experts living abroad. The Council will discuss economic topics and open research projects. Today's session, which discussed the budget for the next four years, gathered about 80 participants, including trade union leaders and representatives of the Croatian Employers' Association. Minister Crkvenac said that the priority of the Government's programme for this year was the maintaining of the production and employment with an acceptable economic stability, which would create conditions for a successful development in the upcoming years. In order to realise this, the Minister announced the decrease of the budget and a draft of a three-year-long budget programme which would introduce guidelines of economic and fiscal policy. "We are going to draw the line with December 31, 1999", Crkvenac said, adding that a part of Croatia's debt will be paid this year, a part would partially be transformed into a public debt, while a part would be covered by foreign debt accumulation. According to Minister Crkvenac, the Government will propose a wider scope of measures for the realisation of its economic programme in the upcoming days. (hina) it mm