OPATIJA, Nov 15 (Hina) - A Croatian Deputy Prime Minister, Slavko Linic, on Wednesday asserted that the incumbent Government had succeeded in increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 3.5 percent, reducing the fall of employment
rate from 12 to 1.3 percent, raising export and cutting the cost of labour in the last ten months.
OPATIJA, Nov 15 (Hina) - A Croatian Deputy Prime Minister, Slavko
Linic, on Wednesday asserted that the incumbent Government had
succeeded in increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 3.5
percent, reducing the fall of employment rate from 12 to 1.3
percent, raising export and cutting the cost of labour in the last
ten months.#L#
"We have changed a fiscal policy, adopted measures to attract
foreign investments, in a favourable manner rescheduled foreign
debt, abolished the practice of arbitrary rehabilitation, helped
recover the pension and health insurance funds, and slashed the
number of new pensioners," Linic told a seminar which Croatian
economists were holding in the coastal resort of Opatija.
Linic complained that the grey economy was continuing to make
damage to the country's economy and therefore it would be necessary
to thwart this phenomenon. Besides, over 30,000 business subjects
are still being blocked and this encumbers the economy as well, he
added.
With launching bankruptcy procedures, this Government is trying to
clear up the situation in the economy and preserve as many sound
jobs as possible. It is significant that a stand is being changed
that the problems in some companies could be settled with workers
taking to the streets and directors (remaining distanced) in
offices, Linic added.
He stressed that the process of privatisation in 520 firms, owned by
the Government, should be completed and management freed from
politics next year.
In order to facilitate the comprehension of the real possibilities
of the Ivica Racan Cabinet, Linic reiterated that at the moment when
this Government had been inaugurated, the situation in the country
had been chaotic, with the international blockade of the domestic
economy and policy, with the dissatisfaction of all social partners
and with the level of grey economy reaching the real economy.
This government inherited the foreign debt of 10 billion US
dollars, the budgetary debt of nine billion kuna, a strong trend in
a rise in the jobless rate, a drop in export, a high price of labour,
significant fiscal burdens, ruined funds, a huge number of
pensioners and other problems, he said.
(hina) jn ms