Hrvatska administrativna elita i problemi upravljanja u procesu europskih integracija
Croatian Administrative Elite and Governance Problems in the European Integrations Process

Summary/Abstract: This paper deals with the behaviour of the Croatian administrative elite within the context of legislative and administrative obligations which Croatia has on its road to European Union membership. Presented empirical findings (mostly the qualitative ones) are part of the international project "After the Accession: The Socio-Economic Culture of Eastern Europe in the Enlarged Union: An Asset or a Liability?", realized between 2002 and 2003 in eight Central and Eastern European countries. We defined here as public administration the complex of institutions designed for implementation of formal rules on state level, and by Croatian administrative elite we mean the key politicians and experts managing particular state ministries and agencies. The key research findings can be summarized as follows. First, there are very visible tensions among the parts of the administrative elite considering the low level of professionalism within the central and local public administration staff. Second, Croatia has no clearly defined and elaborated EU accession strategy and firmly defined negotiation position towards the EU. Third, these data warn us that Croatia still does not have in a real sense an effective administrative elite along all the lines of a central and local administrative system. The main reason for that is the attitude of the political elite which is regarding the administrative staff only as a politically dependent sub-structure and not as a developmental resource of public administration.

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