Adaptation of Croatian Public Administration for Association with the European Union

The Republic of Croatia has expressed political will to become a full member of the European Union and therefore it is necessary for it to fulfill, besides three groups of Copenhagen criteria (political, economic, legal), the fourth - Madrid criterion (administrative), i.e. too adapt its administrative structure in such a manner as to create conditions for its gradual and harmonious integration (strengthening of administrative capability and creating an efficient system of public administration which will ensure an effective process of adoption and implementation of acquis communautaire). The author analyses the activities of the Republic of Croatia and especially of the Central Office for Public Administration in the realization and fulfillment of this administrative criterion for admission of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union. In the first phase of adaptation some significant organizational changes have been made in the structure of central public administrative bodies along with corresponding legal regulations. In the second phase, the Government has paid special attention to inservice training of civil servants (the plan for the admission of trainees and the strategy of professional education and in-service training of civil servants have been made and the Center for In-service Training has been established), utilization of modern technology in the work of administration, acceleration of the process of solving administrative cases and civil servants' relationships. In the third, fourth and fifth phases which will proceed from 2005 until 2007, the Government intends, by changing procedural laws and establishing independent agencies, to accelerate administrative processes and the implementation of electronic office business, complete the process of decentralisation of public affairs and a number of legal, organizational, technical and personnel measures in order to transform administration into an efficient service for citizens and economy.