After discussing amendment proposals, the Croatian Parliament voted on Thursday on the 2024 budget, which projects modest economic growth with a general budget deficit of 1.9 percent of GDP. This deficit is much lower than our planned 3 percent. The Croatian state budget was supported by 77 attendees and 42 voted against it in the 151-member parliament.
The budget was not voted on by the opposition parties, because they believe it is an electoral trick before the elections, and they consider its implementation unrealistic. As they said: The government cannot manage public finances properly, and they warned that Croatians are at the forefront of the European Union when it comes to spending on food. On the other hand, the government and ruling parties insisted that the budget was sustainable, timely and social.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said earlier: “Our primary mission is to protect the most socially vulnerable groups, ensure the stability of public finances and invest in further development.”
The government plans revenues of 28.5 billion euros and expenditures of 32.6 billion euros. Compared to this year, revenues will rise by three percent and expenses by 11.2 percent. The general budget deficit will reach 4.1 billion euros.
Zagreb expects economic growth of 0.7 percent in 2024, 2.7 percent in 2025, and 2.6 percent in 2026. According to expectations, the ratio of national debt to gross domestic product will decrease from 60.7 percent in 2023 to 58 percent in 2024, then to 56.6 percent. in 2025, and to 55.5 percent in 2026. The Council of Ministers expects average annual inflation to reach 3.1 percent next year, and it also expects a monetary deterioration of 2.4 percent by 2025 and 2.2 percent by 2026. (MTI)
