Review article
Expecting SAPARD in Croatia: EU Solutions versus National Aspirations
Ramona FRANIĆ
Nataša BOKAN
Ornella KUMRIĆ
Abstract
Experts in the field of agriculture and rural areas believe that
the transitional period brings positive changes in rural areas,
helping their easier integration into global society. One of
the integration instruments is the pre-accession program for
agriculture and rural development – SAPARD. This research is
focused on characteristics of the encounter of different
organizational cultures, the "Western" European on the one
hand, and our "Eastern" on the other, in the process of
expecting SAPARD. The research was conducted at three
levels, from institutional to producers’: representatives from
the state and local administration were interviewed, as well
as the representatives of farmers interested in SAPARD. The
research results point out that in practice, during the SAPARD
implementation, the same problems will arise as in other
countries that have used it: complex administrative and
organizational procedures, financial criteria, insufficient
national budget for co-financing. Moreover, these problems
will in Croatia be burdened by a very short period for its
utilization, so SAPARD is not expected to be the program for
agricultural and rural development, but the program for
building up business discipline and cooperation according to
European standards. The research shows that the Western
influence is very welcome in re-shaping Croatian standards,
which in time will contribute to the realization of the EU
objectives of convergence and cohesion.
Keywords
Croatia; EU; agriculture; rural development; SAPARD
Hrčak ID:
19163
URI
Publication date:
31.10.2007.
Visits: 2.283 *