October the 16th, 2021 - The situation with the Banovina post-earthquake reconstruction process isn't particularly positive. This likely comes as no real surprise to those of us living in Zagreb, where certain areas still look as if the earthquake of March 2020 happened far more recently than it did.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, it was said on Wednesday at a round table called ''the reconstruction and development of Banovina'' that things with the Banovina post-earthquake reconstrction process weren't going quickly enough, but that it all can be fixed.
The round table on the matter was organised by the Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia, Zoran Milanovic, and according to Velibor Mackic, the president's special adviser for the economy, it's necessary to separate reconstruction and development when it comes to this Central Croatian area which was struck by a devastating earthquake at the very end of last year.
"Representatives of the EBRD said that the funds for this are available, but that they're waiting for infrastructure projects," said Mackic, and warned that the development part of this process "remained in the lurch."
Those present agreed that all previous projects related to Banovina are applicable within the existing law. Asked if bottlenecks have been located in in the area, which is why the reconstruction process is taking so long, he answered that bottlenecks aren't something that should come as a surprise to anyone.
According to him, it is crucial to manage the development of the area during the Banovina post-earthquake reconstruction process, and has called for rapid public sector intervention.
"It's necessary for some things to be settled, and we believe that the state can help: from settling the situation in the process of reconstruction, and to speed it up. It's necessary to enter that space regardless of the disorder of ownership relations,'' said Mackic.
Along with the President of the Republic of Croatia, Zoran Milanovic, the round table was attended by representatives of the World Bank Office in Croatia, HAZU, EBRD, and HUP.
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