The Croatian government's programme for economic recovery is very important and deserves to be supported, the head of the EBRD office in Croatia, Charlotte Ruhe, said at a working dinner organised by the American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia on Thursday.

She said that now that the government's priorities were defined, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development would determine courses of its action in Croatia more easily.

Asked whether the EBRD was willing to participate in the privatisation of state-held stakes in Croatia, notably in the privatisation of the Hrvatska Postanka Banka (HPB), Ruhe said that it was well known that this financial institution was interested in having a stake in the Croatian postal bank but that the government would decide on that.

She recalled that since its arrival in Croatia in 1994, the EBRD had invested EUR 2.05 billion in 102 projects.

The bank's 2010-2013 strategy puts an emphasis on investments in the energy sector, on enhancement of the country's competitiveness as well as on assistance in the privatisation and restructuring of companies.

The EBRD annual assembly will be held in Zagreb on 14-15 May, when the committee of governors is expected to consider the bank's response to challenges stemming from the crisis and to draft a five-year strategy.

The EBRD is an international financial institution that supports projects in 29 countries from central Europe to central Asia. It is owned by 61 countries, the EC and the EIB.