CROATIA

Croatia (Croatian: Hrvatska), officially the Republic of Croatia (Republika Hrvatska, is a country at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, Central Europe, and the Balkans. Its capital is Zagreb. Croatia borders with Slovenia and Hungary to the north, Serbia to the northeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the east, Montenegro to the far southeast, and the Adriatic Sea to the south. Croatia is a candidate for membership of the European Union and is expecting NATO membership invitation in April 2008. On October 17, 2007 Croatia became a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2008-2009 term.

History

The Croats settled in the Balkans in the early 7th century and formed two principalities: Dalmatia and Pannonia. The establishment of the Trpimirović dynasty ca 850 brought strengthening to the Dalmatian Croat Duchy, which together with the Pannonian principality became a Kingdom in 925 under King Tomislav.

In 1102, Croatia entered into a personal union with the Hungarian Kingdom. After the 1526 Battle of Mohács the "reliquiae reliquiarum" (remnants of the remnants) of Croatia became a part of the Habsburg Monarchy in 1527.

It was part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, from 1918-1929, and Kingdom of Yugoslavia, from 1929-1941.

In 1941-1945 an Axis known as the Independent State of Croatia was set up, and after the victory of the Allies, Croatia became a republic within Yugoslavia.

In 1991 Croatia declared independence and a bitter and costly war was fought by the Croatian government against the Serb-led Yugoslav People's Army, Serbian paramilitary forces and rebel Serbs. Later the war mutated into a conflict between independent Croatia and the rebel Serbs, with the support of Serbia proper. The war came to an end with signing of the Dayton Agreement in 1995.

Geography

Croatia is located in Southern Europe. Its shape resembles that of a crescent or a horseshoe, which flanks its neighbours Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro. To the north lie Slovenia and Hungary; Italy lies across the Adriatic Sea. Its mainland territory is split in two non-contiguous parts by the short coastline of Bosnia and Herzegovina around Neum.

Its terrain is diverse, including:

plains, lakes and rolling hills in the continental north and northeast (Central Croatia and Slavonia, part of the Pannonian Basin);

densely wooded mountains in Lika and Gorski Kotar, part of the Dinaric Alps;

rocky coastlines on the Adriatic Sea (Istria, Northern Seacoast and Dalmatia).

The country is famous for its many national parks. Croatia has a mixture of climates. In the north and east it is continental, Mediterranean along the coast and a semi-highland and highland climate in the south-central region. Offshore Croatia consists of over one thousand islands varying in size.

Politics

Since the adoption of the 1990 Constitution, Croatia has been a democratic republic. Between 1990 and 2000 it had a semi-presidential system, and since 2000 it has a parliamentary system.

The President of the Republic (Predsjednik) is the head of state, directly elected to a five-year term and is limited by the Constitution to a maximum of two terms. In addition to being the commander in chief of the armed forces, the president has the procedural duty of appointing the Prime minister with the consent of the Parliament, and has some influence on foreign policy. His official residence is Predsjednički dvori. Apart from that he has summer residences on the islands of Vanga (Brijuni islands) and the island of Hvar.

The Croatian Parliament (Sabor) is a unicameral legislative body (a second chamber, the "House of Counties", which was set up by the Constitution of 1990, was abolished in 2001). The number of the Sabor's members can vary from 100 to 160; they are all elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The plenary sessions of the Sabor take place from January 15 to July 15, and from September 15 to December 15.

The Croatian Government (Vlada) is headed by the Prime minister who has two deputy prime ministers and fourteen ministers in charge of particular sectors of activity. The executive branch is responsible for proposing legislation and a budget, executing the laws, and guiding the foreign and internal policies of the republic. Government's official residence is at Banski dvori.

Croatia has a three-tiered judicial system, consisting of the Supreme Court, county courts, and municipal courts. The Constitutional Court rules on matters regarding the Constitution.

Economy

The Croatian economy has a stable functioning market economy according to EU reports and is the most advanced economy of South-Eastern Europe (Greece excluded). The Croatian preliminary 2008 GDP data states that the Croatian GDP is USD 68,208 billion, or just over USD 17,100 per capita (real income), putting Croatia ahead of the EU member-states Romania, Bulgaria, Poland and Lithuania. "Grey" economy of about USD 2 billion is still not included in GDP calculations like in other EU countries, something which would certainly increase it.

The economy is service-based, with the service sector accounting for 67% of the total GDP. The industrial sector is dominated by shipbuilding, followed by food processing and chemical industry. Industry makes up 27% of Croatia’s total economic output. Agriculture makes up 6%. Tourism is a notable source of income during the summer. With over 10,0 million foreign tourists in 2006 generating a revenue of EUR 7 billion, Croatia is ranked as the 18th most popular tourist destination in the world. In 2006 Croatia exported goods in value of USD 10.4 billion (FOB) (19.7 billion including service exports).

Unemployment was 11.9% in 2006. Of particular concern is the heavily backlogged judiciary system, combined with inefficient public administration, especially issues of land ownership and corruption.

The country has been preparing for membership in the European Union, its most important trading partner. In February 2005, the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU officially came into force.

In the first quarter of 2007, Croatian economy rose by 7.1%, in second quarter 6.6% so the annual growth rate which was expected to be around 4.7% has now been revised to 6.5% or more. Analysts believe that the Croatian economy, after modest growth of around 4.5% so far, is finally entering a period of faster and stronger economic prosperity. Due to these inflationary figures, there has been a decline in eports over recent years.

Demographics

The population of Croatia has been stagnating over the last decade. The 1991–1995 war in Croatia had previously displaced large parts of the population and increased emigration. Most Serbs fled the country in the last stage of the war. Some Croats who also fled the country during the war are returning. The natural growth rate is minute or negative (less than ± 1%), as the demographic transition has been completed half a century ago. Average life expectancy is approximately 75 years, and the literacy rate is 98.5%.

Croatia is inhabited mostly by Croats (89.9%). There are around twenty minorities, Serbs being the largest one (4.5%) and others having less than 0.5% each. The predominant religion is Catholicism (87.8%), with some Orthodox (4.4%) and Sunni Muslim (1.3%) minorities.

The official and common language, Croatian, is a South Slavic language, using the Latin alphabet. Less than 5% of the population cites other languages as their mother tongues.

Culture

Croatian culture is based on a thirteen century-long history during which the country has attained many monuments and cities, which gave birth to a number of historical figures. The country includes six World Heritage sites and eight national parks. Among a list of notable people that came from Croatia are three Nobel prize winners, and numerous inventors. Some of the world's first fountain pens came from Croatia.

Croatia also has a place in the history of clothing as the origin of the necktie (cravat). The country has a long artistic, literary and musical tradition. Of particular interest is the diverse nature of Croatian cuisine.