Croatia - A Society in a Transition
More than a decade after the fall of the Berlin Wall, a complex process of transition has developed in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Most of the transitional states have transformed their centrally planned economies into market economies, which implied a dramatic change in economic management and institutional structure. There are many similarities between the CEE countries that are undergoing the process of the transition, particularly related to the process of privatization, deregulation and market liberalisation. Nevertheless, the problems of transition need to be studied taking into account development specifics of each country.
Croatia entered in a dramatic way the process what is widely named a transition. Transition in a social sense is a change from one system into another. Globally, the modernist paradigm changed to the post-modern with the disappearance of central authorities, universal dogmas and foundational ethics. The post-modern world introduced fragmentation, instability, indeterminacy and insecurity. Locally, in Croatia, transition occurred as a quantum leap from the Socialist, one-party, state-controlled market system, into a capitalist, parliamentary democracy, free-market system. The political and economic changes were paralleled with a war for independence. The market economy and parliamentary democracy that the developed countries of the West projected upon Croatia radically changed its political and economic landscape.
Croatia has been internationally recognized in 1992, and since then, in foreign policy terms, Croatia has set itself the goals of continued integration into the world economy as a member of WTO as well as membership of the European Union and full participation in the single European market. It can be anticipated that the interaction of the market economy over the Croatian social scape will result in ever deepening patterns of inequalities and disparities. Unless addressed, these will inevitably have negative consequences for the national economy and for society as a whole.
Croatia today is an open economy in a partly globalized market. The effect of economic integration has been uneven across the country. Some parts, such as Zagreb and Istria, have been in a position to compete in this competitive environment and have experienced significant investment and economic growth. Some regions have seen traditional industries and sectors go into decline and are struggling with the challenge of transition, while others remain poor and ill-adapted to the wider national and international economy. The trauma of the recent war has compounded problems in many regions. The physical degradation of infrastructure, as well as the damage caused to social fabric and communities, has weakened the capacity for development.