Croatia plans to cut its budget deficit in half in the next two years from the current 14.8 billion kunas (2.011 billion Euros) or 4.7 per cent of the GDP, the Minister of Finance Martina Dalic has said.

At a recent meeting with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank officials, Dalic said that the plan is based on measures undertaken by the current Croatian government that include laws cementing expenditure cuts.

Whether these measures will be implemented or changed remains to be seen as Croatia faces parliamentary elections this year, the daily Jutarnji List writes.

Dalic said that Croatia did not seek IMF’s or WB’s help because it had enough "knowledge and intelligence" to deal with the crisis on its own.

At the institutions' annual conference, IMF presented a report which shows that those who have received its assistance (except for Greece) will register a GDP growth this year. The biggest "winners" are Latvia (3.3 per cent this year and 4 per cent the next), Romania (1.5 per cent in 2011 and 4.4 next year).

The projections for Serbia are 3 and 5 per cent for 2011 and 2012, respectively.

The Croatian economy however will expand at a slower rate, with optimists projecting 1.5 per cent growth for this year.