Charting Croatia‘s Blue Economy Pathways

With an accessible and attractive coastline of untouched natural splendor, Adriatic Croatia is a strategic driver of national economic development. It boasts rich cultural heritage and biodiversity and abundant coastal and marine resources providing the country with high socioeconomic value. A decade of strong growth of maritime tourism has fueled stable economic development in the coastal zone. Despite this progress, Adriatic Croatia faces multiple environmental challenges stemming from anthropogenic pressures and climate change. Negative impacts from over-tourism, urbanization, and pollution underline the urgency of adopting a sustainable maritime economy approach. The demographic decline and the lack of economic diversification could diminish future economic opportunities of Adriatic Croatia to grow sustainably and provide new jobs. The emerging challenges call for close attention in the context of the national development goals, sustainable development commitments and Croatia’s aspiration to achieve blue growth. This report discusses the concept of blue economy while trying to understand and define the impacts of current challenges on the Republic of Croatia’s transition to blue economy.