Local Government
1
Large Cities
0
Capital Cities
1
Regional or State Governments
0
National Government
0
Other Institutions
0
Local Government
1
Large Cities
0
Capital Cities
1
Regional or State Governments
0
National Government
0
Other Institutions
0
Community
Capital
Zagreb
Population
4 067 500
Language
Croatian
Currency
Kuna
Indexes
Democracy
59
Flawed Democracy
Democracy
Democracy
59
Flawed Democracy
Democracy
Corruption Perception
63/180
High
Corruption Perception
Corruption Perception
63/180
High
Corruption Perception
Human Development
46
Very High
Human Development
Human Development
46
Very High
Human Development
World Happiness
79/153
High
World Happiness
World Happiness
79/153
High
World Happiness
Global Peace
28
High
Global Peace
Global Peace
28
High
Global Peace
Global Terrorism
138
No Impact
Global Terrorism
Global Terrorism
138
No Impact
Global Terrorism
Legislação sobre Orçamentos Participativos
No further legal development has been made in Croatia in regard to Participatory Budgeting, but due to the fact that more and more cities are becoming aware of this particular tool for participatory democracy, it is likely to expect future progress within the regulatory framework which will logically follow the practice. According to the state of PB development in Croatia, the regulatory framework is not restricting hence no legal barrier pushes for immediate further action until it becomes more common practice in Croatia.
INITIAL REFERENCE FOR THE ADOPTION OF PB IN THE COUNTRY
First PB initiative in Croatia was in the city of Pazin in 2014. They were inspired by a good practice from Spain.
SUBSEQUENT REFERENCE FOR PB DISSEMINATION
Pazin was a city-role model for almost all other Croatian cities to start to develop their local PB models. Good practices from Portugal and Spain were also inspiration for refining local PB models. As an example, the Cascais PB in Portugal was an influence on the Dubrovnik PB.
Impacts of COVID-19 Disease on PB
- PB have been suspended: 0%
- PB continued to function normally: 100%
- PB have undergone changes/adaptations: 0%
Main Trends of PB in the Country During the Pandemic
Participation has generally become a side issue during the pandemic worldwide, but in relation to participatory budgeting in Croatia it is important to note that despite certain modifications that were necessary due to epidemiological measures such as certain delays for the purposes of social distancing, no discourse has opened up in the public which would proclaim PB as redundant or a burden to public budget.
This could actually be indicative in the sense that PB is seen as a useful process in which participatory decision-making on public spending for city development is necessary and allows even more efficient allocation of funds, harmonized with real needs.
Additional Information
There are currently 8 active processes in Croatia involving citizen participation in creating public budget spending plans, under the name of participatory budgeting. But according to the PB Atlas concept, only 1 city in Croatia actually envisages including citizens in decision-making and sharing decision power- Pazin. However, in relation to other 7 cities - Rijeka, Pula, Trogir, Slavonski Brod, Zlatar, Karlovac, Sisak - we believe that it is important to also point out their engagement too and the effort made in the perception change of how public spending should be planned and executed.
Compared to 2018 research, a number of ‘Participatory Budgeting’ has increased from 5 to 8 but as advisory processes with certain influence on decisions on a more informal level than voting. In any case, it should be emphasized that in accordance with the given concept of the PB Atlas, which necessarily implies the voting phase, only 1 Croatian city corresponds to this practice, although a total of 8 proclaim implementation of PB. It is therefore, for any further development of PB in Croatia, necessary to work on changing the discourse on what PB really means.
