Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.5559/di.23.3.02
The Structure of Public Spending on Drug Policy in Croatia: What are the Priorities?
Sandra Švaljek
; Institute of Economics, Zagreb
Jelena Budak
orcid.org/0000-0003-3739-4704
; Institute of Economics, Zagreb
Abstract
The national policy responses to the rising drug problem are
effectuated by financing a large set of activities aimed at
combating drug abuse. This paper provides an analysis of
drug-related public expenditures in Croatia. We have
examined the expenditures of public sector institutions in
Croatia in the period from 2009 to 2012. Our main
research goal was to identify the total drug-related public
expenditures including the unlabelled ones, and to develop
the method of estimating and allocating unlabelled
expenditures by the type of drug policy program. The
estimated total expenditures according to Reuter's drug
program division are allocated into prevention, treatment
and social reintegration, harm reduction, and law
enforcement. The results indicate which types of drug policy
programs public authorities in Croatia are really committed
to in the sense that those programs absorb the largest
proportions of total drug policy expenditures. The
methodology applied could contribute to the development
of the international methodological standards in this field.
The findings are discussed in terms of future monitoring
of public expenditures and policy recommendations,
in order to facilitate better design programs and activities
carried out by policy makers in fighting drug abuse in
Croatia.
Keywords
drug policy expenditures; prevention; harm reduction; treatment; law enforcement
Hrčak ID:
130051
URI
Publication date:
30.10.2014.
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