CRO. FIRST PM GRANIC RECEIVES EBRD DELEGATION

ZAGREB, July 12 (Hina) - Croatia's First Deputy Prime Minister Goran Granic on Wednesday received a delegation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development which arrived in Croatia to see which private and public sector development projects EBRD could assist. A strategy for Croatia-related projects is in the preliminary stage, and should be discussed by EBRD's Committee in the autumn. Strategies for each country are adopted for a two-year period. EBRD has focused its interest in Croatia on the financial restructuring and privatisation of companies, the infrastructure, banks, and small and medium-sized entrepreneurship. The EBRD delegation included Chris Cviic, a senior political adviser on Baltic countries, Central and Southeast Europe, and Rika Ishii, EBRD's economist, the Croatian government's Media and Public Relations Service said in a statement. EBRD's representatives were especially interested in amendments to economy-related laws. First Deputy Prime Minister Granic acquainted them with the principal guidelines of bills which have been forwarded into parliamentary procedure. Today's talks also tackled the privatisation of public companies, a reform of the power-supply sector, a strategy for Croatia's development, and current reforms in the economy. The EBRD delegation outlined possibilities of lending its experts for various fields. The bank's experts and officials should next visit Croatia in September. (hina) ha jn