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EBRD President Lemierre to visit Croatia
EBRD President Jean Lemierre begins a three-day visit to Croatia on Sunday during which he will meet the President of the Republic of Croatia, Stipe Mesic, Prime Minister Ivica Racan, Finance Minister and EBRD Governor Mato Ckrvenac, the Mayor of Zagreb, the Mayor of Dubrovnik, as well as other national and local officials. Mr Lemierre will also have meetings with representatives of the country’s largest companies and banks. It will be the first visit to Croatia by an EBRD President.
The visit will serve to underline the importance the EBRD attaches to the development of the region and the Bank’s support for Croatia. Mr Lemierre will be accompanied by Imre Tarafas, the Board Director who represents Croatia, and Assistant Board Director Andrija Kojakovic.
Croatia has staged a strong comeback from the aftermath of the war in the early 1990s, with growth rates of 3.6 per cent and 5.2 per cent in 2001 and 2002, respectively. The government has embarked on a reform process that has achieved closer international integration, liberalisation of trade and prices, and the privatisation of key sectors of the economy.
The EBRD signed its first deal in Croatia in 1994 and has since invested more than EURO 1 billion in a large number of projects. Last year alone the Bank invested €320 million in Croatia. All told, the EBRD has mobilised some €2 billion from its business partners for investment in Croatia, for projects ranging from agribusiness to transport and banking to telecommunications. The Bank has worked very closely with growing local Croatian companies, supporting their regional expansion, and is involved in a deep partnership with many local banks in order to finance small and medium sized enterprises and housing.
In addition, the Bank has led the way in infrastructure projects, introducing private-sector concepts in financing. The EBRD co-financed a solid-waste landfill site in Zagreb with $53 million in 1998 and is now involved in the construction of the first water-water treatment plant in the Croatian capital city with a €55 million loan. Shortly, the Bank will be implementing in close concert with Croatian banks a scheme aimed at supporting investment by small and medium sized municipalities. This scheme will support the development of tourism in the country, a key objective shared by the Croatian authorities and EBRD.
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