Incompetent Management of IPA Funds Results in Loss of Funding

18 January 2008

An NGO coalition accuses the Government of Croatia of causing the loss of funding from the European pre-accession funds through its incompetence and demands urgent strengthening of capacities of the Central Unit for Financing and Negotiations with the Ministry of Finance and introduction of quality control system.

According to the Coalition, the lack of capacity to use the IPA funds, which are many times smaller than the structural funds, may ultimately lead to a situation in which the EU membership fee costs more than the funds that national, regional and local governments will be able to use to invest in development projects.

The Coalition adds that they don�t think the CUFN employees are to blame for the situation, having in mind the problems they face in the daily work, but an omission of their leadership which didn�t secure proper education, salaries and support.

The associations are worried by the fact that one international competition for funding was annulled over leaks of information and providing privileged information to a company running in the competition, resulting in a loss of over 800,000 EUR in funding for the National Natural Protection Office, intended for development of its information system.

- The sole responsibility for the low level of utilization of IPA funds lies with the Government, which failed to provide a quality management system, at the expense of the users of the funds, which suffer direct damages, claim the associations, demanding from the Government to urgently implement EC demands regarding improved management.

The Coalition includes Centre for Peace Studies , CESI, GONG, Iskorak, Kontra, Croatian Youth Network, ZamirNet, Zelena Akcija, Zeleni forum, Zenska soba.