ZAGREB, 31 March 2022 - Croatia has surpassed nine EU member states in terms of EU funds absorbed since 2020 and now ranks 19th, the Regional Development and EU Funds Ministry said on Thursday.

According to Cohesion Data, the European Commission platform on finances and achievements under the European Structural and Investment Funds 2014-2020, in 2020 Croatia ranked 27th among the EU's then 28 countries in terms of payments.

Croatia is better at absorbing funds than Spain, Italy, Slovakia, Romania, Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg and Austria. Lithuania has absorbed the most EU funds.

In the 2014-20 period, Croatia had €10.73 billion from ESIF at its disposal. By 24 March 2022, projects worth €13.4 billion were contracted, or 124.91% of the allocation, above the EU average of 113%.

Of that amount, €7.32 billion was paid and €6.03 billion was verified, 68.17% and 56.17% of the allocation, respectively. The EU payments average is 63%.

If €763.17 million from REACT EU and €597.56 million added to the Rural Development Programme are added to the original allocation, the total allocation by 2023 amounts to €12.09 billion.

Between 2013 and 24 March 2022, Croatia received from the EU budget HRK 49.06 billion more than it paid into it. When the advance paid for the National Recovery and Resilience Plan is included, Croatia is HRK 55.19 billion in the black, the ministry said.

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