National Development Strategy Croatia 2030: Roadmap for a Better Future

competitiveness.
The lack of investments into hotels is closely connected to the lack of tourism products 
that would more significantly contribute to the extension of the tourism season. The lack of transport links 
outside of the main season, particularly in air transport, is another important obstacle that needs to be 
tackled to attract more investments into hotels. 
74.
Stronger linkages between tourism and the rest of the economy would catalyze investment in 
other sectors. 
Positive spillover effects of tourism to the rest of domestic economy are limited, as evi-
denced by the heavy reliance of the sector on imports and significant seasonality in employment. For ex-
ample, domestic agricultural production is not sufficiently linked to the tourism sector, in particular with 
regard to development of local agri-food chains. 
75.
Agriculture, forestry and fishing, as primary sectors, are shrinking contributors to the Croatian 
economy but there is important potential for increasing their productivity and supporting higher 
value-added activities. 
In recent years the share of agriculture in total GVA of the Croatian economy has 
stabilized around 3.6 percent. However, there are large regional differences and in the lagging regions of 
the country this share is significantly higher. Over the last two decades the sector’s contribution to the 
economy has almost halved, despite the large amount of state aid and EU funds directed towards it. This is 
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It should be noted that security and economic crisis affecting some of Croatia’s competitors in the Mediterranean in the same 
period have also contributed to increased foreign demand. 

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Croatia 2030: Roadmap for a Better Future
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in line with the structural transformation of agriculture with labor productivity and value addition becoming 
drivers of sector growth, with economy-wide effects of the broader agri-food sector in Croatia being sig-
nificant. Within this process of transformation, there is an important opportunity for improving sector per-
formance, considering Croatia’s natural endowments, and growing demand generated by the tourism sec-
tor, while better targeting support.

76.