Eurocommissaris Hübner (regionaal beleid) naar Kroatië voor gesprekken (en)

Regional policy Commissioner Danuta Hübner is visiting Croatia on Tuesday to discuss preparations for the opening of accession negotiations on regional policy, as well as progress in setting up management and control systems for pre-accession financial assistance.

Ahead of the meetings, Danuta Hübner said: "The Commission is ready to support the Croatian authorities in strengthening their efforts to prepare sound and efficient structures for the management of pre-accession financial assistance and future cohesion instruments.â€

Mrs Hübner is meeting the President of Croatia, Stjepan Mesi? and Prime Minister Ivo Sanader. She is also meeting Maritime Affairs, Transport, Development and Tourism Minister Bo_idar Kalmeta, Finance Minister Ivan Suker, Economy, Labour and Enterprise Minister Branko Vukeli?, and other officials responsible for the use of pre-accession financial assistance and future structural funds. While in Zagreb, Commissioner Hübner will open a conference entitled "EU Regional Policy: from Pre-accession programmes to Structural Funds".

Commissioner Hübner will also meet representatives of the Central Office for Development Strategy and Coordination of EU Funds, and regional and local authorities.

She will stress how important it is for Croatia to have the institutional, administrative and budgetary capacity in place to ensure full participation in EU cohesion policy and respect of all the requirements in the related Regulations.

Notes for editors

Between 2001 and 2004, Croatia received EUR 240 million of support through the CARDS programme to strengthen democratic institutions and put in place reforms needed to align Croatia with EU standards. Between 2005 and 2006, the country received about EUR 245 million from the EU's pre-accession instruments PHARE, SAPARD and ISPA to strengthen its institutional capacity, and to develop its rural areas and its transport and environment infrastructure. From 2007 until accession, Croatia will be supported by the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA).

More information: http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/atlas/croatia/factsheets/pdf/fact_hr_en.pdf