engleski

Impact of EU Funds on Regional Development

The paper investigates the impact of EU funds on the development of a region. The concept of region has been defined in a number of ways, depending on the perspective, e.g., geographic, economic, social, statistical, etc. The European Union has established a common classification of territorial units for statistics, known as ‘NUTS’ (based on which Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics of the Central Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Croatia, i.e. NUTS:HR was developed). The NUTS nomenclature, which subdivides national territory into regions, facilitates the use of structural funds, on which this paper focuses. Croatia has undergone the regionalisation process several times, having been divided into five NUTS regions initially ; it now has two, i.e. three. In order to achieve a more equitable distribution of available funds, increase regional competitiveness and promote development, it is important to adequately subdivide the Croatian territory into NUTS regions. The current subdivision has enabled Osijek-Baranja County, which forms part of Pannonian Croatia, to absorb a significant amount of pre-accession funds. Upon accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union, it continued to withdraw considerable funds, thus giving an example of good practice that other counties in Croatia should follow. The European Union offers Slavonia new opportunities for development, as confirmed by the official data of the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds on the availability of EUR 10.7 billion from EU funds. Opportunities for withdrawal of funds are ample ; however, in order to facilitate cooperation between the EU and Croatia, it is necessary to raise the level of expertise and professional skills for the staff dealing with these issues in Croatia.

European Union, regional policy, European Union funds, NUTS regions, Osijek-Baranja County

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