ties, which engage
roughly 68% of the population. After several years of lagging
performance, the Ivorian economy began a comeback in 1994, due to
the 50% devaluation of the CFA franc and improved prices for cocoa
and coffee, growth in nontraditional primary exports such as
pineapples and rubber, limited trade and banking liberalization,
offshore oil and gas discoveries, and generous external financing
and debt rescheduling by multilateral lenders and France. Moreover,
government adherence to donor-mandated reforms led to a jump in
growth to 5% annually during 1996-99. Growth was negative in 2000-03
because of the difficulty of meeting the conditions of international
donors, continued low prices of key exports, and severe civil war.
Political uncertainty will continue to cloud the economic outlook in
2004, but rising world prices for cocoa will help both the current
account and the government balances.

Croatia
Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of
Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized
area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav
average. The economy emerged from a mild recession in 2000 with
tourism, banking, and public investments leading the way.
Unemployment remains high, at over 13 percent, with structural
factors slowing its decline. While macroeconomic stabilization has
largely been achieved, structural reforms lag because of deep
resistance on the part of the public and lack of strong support from
politicians. Growth, while impressively over 4% for the last several
years, has been achieved through high fiscal and current account
deficits. The government is gradually reducing a heavy back log of
civil cases, many involving land tenure. The EU accession process
should accelerate fiscal and structural reform.

Cuba
The government continues to balance the need for economic
loosening against a desire for firm political control. It has
undertaken limited reforms to increase enterprise efficiency and
alleviate serious shortages of food, consumer goods, and services. A
major feature of the economy is the dichotomy between relatively
efficient export enclaves and inefficient domestic sectors. The
average Cuban's standard of living remains at a lower level than
before the depression of the 1990s, which was caused by the loss of
Soviet aid and domestic inefficiencies. The govern