ZAGREB, October 6, 2018 – Material damage from natural disasters amount to billions on the year while budget funds are limited, a state-secretary in the Finance Ministry Zdravko Zrinušić said on Friday and added that the government has recognised the need and has embarked on drawing up a new law to relieve and eliminate the consequences of natural disasters in an effort to improve the system of allocating aid.
“According to official data from 2016, damage was reported in the amount of 1.55 billion kuna, of which as much as 1.47 billion kuna in agriculture. In 2017, that amount nearly doubled and amounted to 3.49 billion kuna, of which 1.88 billion kuna was in agriculture. Other damage also increased drastically by as much as 1.61 billion kuna,” Zrinušić said presenting the draft bill.
Over the past five years, he added, damage resulting from natural disasters amounted to a total of 12.14 billion kuna and the total amount of aid granted amounted to 174 million kuna, which is just 1.44%.
That data indicate the urgency to change the current system of compensating for damage resulting from natural disasters, Zrinušić said, adding that the bill introduces the conditions that damages caused have to be at least 60% of the value of a facility and that a maximum of 50% of the total earmark for damages in a current year be allocated to compensate for damage in agriculture.
The state will continue to endeavour to subsidise insurance premiums and to set up a damage register.
