The EU prods Croatia on reform.
by MEDIA CONTACT RESOURCES, INC.
"Structural reform" appears to be at the heart of
Croatia's economic difficulties, and the apparent divide between
macroeconomic success - GDP growth has averaged 4.1 percent since 2000,
according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) statistics including its
prediction of 4.1 percent growth in GDP in 2005 - and an improvement in
the standard of living for the average Croatian consumer.
"Structural reform" is a widely used euphemism for a need
to repair a government that isn't working very well.
Croatia has been talking to the European Union (EU) about joining,
but the EU is unhappy about the country's progress in structural
reform. The main point of contention for the EU is lack of progress in
war crimes trials - unfinished business from the conflicts in the area
that resulted in Croatia's independence in 1998.
Consumers are also deviled by the fact that the rate of inflation
has been growing at an erratic rate for some time. The IMF is predicting
that the inflation rate in Croatia will grow 3.5 percent in 2005.
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