Roundup: Lithuanian president urges gov't to avoid populism, focus on economic issues

Dalia Grybauskaite, Lithuania president, met on Monday with the members of the 16th government to discuss the most important tasks for 2016.

Reflecting on the most recent social issues, the president called the social democrat led cabinet to tackle social security problems. According to Grybauskaite, the country has to unite against the challenges of violence, suicides, various dependencies and alcohol abuse.

"Also I'd like to offer setting ourselves a task -- Lithuania without orphanages. Lithuania can achieve that. We have to help our children to grow in families and take care of their security," Grybauskaite was quoted in a press release.

The country has faced several deaths of children in recent weeks due to parent's violence, alcohol abuse or fire accidents.

Lithuania, a small Baltic State, is to elect a new parliament in the fall. The year of election is a challenge for the government, in Grybauskaite's words. The head of the country urged the cabinet to concentrate on the priority tasks and avoid turning into populism.

One of the priority tasks for the government, according to Grybauskaite, is to maintain fiscal discipline amid increasing global financial risks.

Fragile global economic environment and the decline of the Russian economy were the main factors that made the Bank of Lithuania to slash the country's economic growth forecast. The Bank of Lithuania expects the country's GDP to grow by 2.9 percent in 2016, compared to the expected growth of 1.7 percent in 2015.

Grybauskaite also pointed to the fact that Lithuania has the lowest pensions in the region, naming it a "painful and shameful fact."

PM'S RESPONSE

Algirdas Butkevicius, the prime minister, promised an action plan to prevent tragedies in socially vulnerable families by the end of February.

The head of the cabinet vowed to put more efforts in attracting foreign investment and cut red tape.

Butkevicius emphasized 2016 will be important as the year when Lithuania starts implementing a program of intelligent specialization, aiming to increase innovations, closer cooperation between scientists, business and the state.

"I think this will be a new generation engine for the development of our economy," Butkevicius was quoted as saying by news website 15min.lt.

The president and the government touched upon national security issues. Grybauskaite highlighted the government has to maintain defense spending ensuring modernization of its armed forces. In recent years, Lithuania increased its defense spending up to 1.48 percent of GDP amid geopolitical tensions in eastern Europe. Last year Grybauskaite said the country can achieve defense spending of 2 percent of GDP by 2018. Endit