CROATIA'S ONLY PENSION INSURANCE FIRM GAINS QUALITY CERTIFICATE

( Editorial: --> 2855 ) ZAGREB, Sept 24 (Hina)- The only Croatian retirement insurance company, Royal mirovinsko osiguranje d.d., was awarded an ISO 9001 quality certificate in Zagreb on Thursday. The certificate has been issued by the international certification organisation IQNet. Royal is the first retirement insurance firm not only in Croatia but in any transitional country to have received a certificate of quality, the chairman of Royal's board of directors, Ivo Bulas, stressed. He mentioned that Royal's celebration coincided with the start of a debate in the Croatian National Parliament on bills relating to mandatory and optional pension insurance. The latter has been successfully marketed by Royal for eight years now. According to Bulas, Royal retirement insurance had come up with a specific programme for the retirement of employees made redundant before the completion of the years of service prescribed by the law for a full pension. Thanks to agreements with Royal, such employees can improve their meagre pensions by paying their severance pay towards their future pensions. In his congratulatory address, Miroslav Matasovic of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) said Royal's systematic efforts for the improvement of the quality of its services should be emulated by all Croatian businesses as an example of progress achieved through hard work and good planing. (Hina) mro /mbr 241914 MET sep 98