Opportunities for Croatia's growth lie in manufacturing, drug and tourist industry -- conference

Croatia's government sees the best opportunities for economic development in the manufacturing industry, car parts production, the pharmaceutical industry, information and communication technologies as well as in tourism, Deputy Prime Minister and Agriculture Minister Tomislav Tolusic said at a conference on industrial production and foreign investments in Zagreb on Tuesday. Addressing the conference organised by the Jutarnji List daily newspaper, the minister said that the government had done much for the recovery of the national economy and it was also aware that it was supposed to implement necessary changes more resolutely.

Therefore this cabinet has put its focus on pubic administration reform, a reform of the judiciary and better control over the governance of state-owned companies with the aim of boosting their productivity.

The government is committed to improving the quality of education and connecting the schooling system with the labour market as well as to the reduction of costs in the public healthcare system, Tolusic said.

He admits that one of the main challenges is to halt the departure of people from Croatia. The pace of emigration is slowing down and it is necessary that all of us, the government and the economic sector, do our utmost to ensure that people will not leave the country, he said.

Tolusic spoke about the importance of attracting foreign investments.

It is essential to catch up with our peers, to create jobs with additional value, to have innovations and upgrade the domestic industry, and to enable the transfer of knowledge and technology, and all that requires foreign investments, the minister said.

The head of the Zagreb Office of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Anton Kovacev, said that the development of the industry was a prerequisite for economic growth and job creation.

Kovacev said that industrial growth and foreign investment were crucial for a steady growth in the coming years in Croatia.

The EIB Vce-President, Dario Scannapieco, said that this banking institution would continue to actively encourage Croatia's development.

The development of the transport infrastructure, energy and energy efficiency, social infrastructure and encouraging the development of SMEs in cooperation with local financial institutions are in the focus of this bank's interest, he said.

Last year, EIB investments in Croatia stood at EUR 590 million, which ranks Croatia third among EU member-states.

EIB investments in 2017 rose by 28% from 2016, Scannapieco said. (Hina)

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