Degert was speaking at a presentation of the results of the 18-month EU CARDS 2002 twinning project "Capacity Strengthening of the State Commission for the Supervision of Public Procurement Procedures (DKOM)".
The project was financed by the European Union with EUR 600,000, and the twinning partner was Slovenia's National Review Commission.
Among the results of the project Degert cited the DKOM's participation in amending the legal framework, training of DKOM staff and other participants in public procurement procedures and raising the awareness of the business sector about the need for the proper implementation of such procedures.
Degert said that Croatia was also facing new challenges, such as completion of the harmonisation of its legislation with that of the EU, acquainting entrepreneurs with their right to seek a review of procedures, and dealing with the problem of direct deals, which he said were completely outside the EU's legal framework.
Finance Minister Ivan Suker said that the establishment of effective supervision of public procurement procedures was part of the government's activities aimed at restructuring public finances and increasing control of how taxpayers' money was being spent.
"Once we solve the problem of the grey economy on the revenue side of the budget and the problem of corruption on the expenditure side, we will be able to talk about reducing the tax burden," Suker said.