Corruption in Croatia
Corruption in Croatia describes the prevention and occurrence of corruption in Croatia. Since the 2020s, Croatia has made steady progress in anti-corruption efforts with enduring political corruption a perpetual focal point in public affairs.[1][2]
Through its accession to the European Union in 2013, Croatia undertook various measures to combat corruption. The legal and institutional framework, as well as government agencies, are addressing the issue of corruption in a much larger scale, and the inter-agency cooperation for corruption prevention increased, but these efforts are facing the large obstacle of an inefficient and corrupt judicial system.[3] A specialized anti-corruption agency, USKOK, prosecuted 2,185 individuals from 2006 to 2012 and achieved a 95% conviction rate, including former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader.[4][5]
Indicators of corruption
[edit]Global Corruption Barometer-EU
[edit]Transparency International's Global Corruption Barometer-EU periodically surveys ordinary citizens of European Union countries about their experiences with corruption during the preceding year. The most recent (as of 2026) survey was conducted from October to December of 2020 and published in 2021. The following tables summarize how Croatian survey respondents reported, compared to all EU respondents.
| Question | Croatian | EU |
|---|---|---|
| Corruption increased in the past year | 41 | 32 |
| Government corruption is a big problem | 92 | 62 |
| Government is doing well in tackling corruption | 26 | 43 |
| Government is doing badly in tackling corruption | 72 | 49 |
| Citizen opinions are a factor in government decisions | 14 | 30 |
| A few special interests run government for their own benefit | 66 | 53 |
| Experience of corruption | Croatian | EU |
|---|---|---|
| Paid a bribe to get a public service | 14 | 7 |
| Used personal connections to get a public service | 36 | 33 |
| Had sex extorted from them, or knew someone who had | 13 | 7 |
| Feared reprisal if they reported corruption | 72 | 45 |
Corruption Perceptions Index
[edit]Transparency International's 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index scored the country at 47 on a scale from 0 ("highly corrupt") to 100 ("very clean").[7] When ranked by score, Croatia ranked 63rd among the 182 countries in the Index, where the country ranked first is perceived to have the most honest public sector.[7] For comparison with regional scores, the best score among Western European and European Union countries[Note 1] was 89, the average score was 64 and the worst score was 40.[9] For comparison with worldwide scores, the best score was 89 (ranked 1), the average score was 42, and the worst score was 9 (ranked 181, in a two-way tie). Since the current version of the Corruption Perceptions Index was introduced in 2012, Croatia's score has fluctuated: its lowest score was 46 in 2012 and its highest scores were 51 in 2015 and 50 in 2022 and 2023.[10]
Anti‑Corruption and Integrity Outlook
[edit]The Anti‑Corruption and Integrity Outlook analysis carried out in 2026 by the OECD on Croatia found that Croatia exceeded the OECD average for integrity on political financing, conflicts of interest, freedom of information, lobbying, judicial transparency, prosecutorial transparency, and civil service accountability.[11]
See also
[edit]- Police corruption in Croatia
- Privatization in Croatia
- Ankica Lepej – first prominent whistleblower case
- List of political scandals in Croatia
Notes
[edit]- ↑ Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.[8]
References
[edit]- ↑ "GRECO issues report evaluating anti-corruption progress in Croatian government and police - Portal - www.coe.int". Portal. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ d.o.o, Globaldizajn. "Deputy PM says Croatia entirely committed to fighting corruption". vlada.gov.hr. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ "Transformation Index 2014". The Bertelsmann Foundation. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ↑ Kuris, Gabriel (7 August 2015). "The Little Anti-Corruption Agency That Could". Foreign Policy.
- Kuris, Gabriel (April 2013). Cleaning House: Croatia Mops Up High-Level Corruption, 2005–2012 (Report). Princeton, New Jersey: Innovations for Successful Societies, Princeton University. pp. 1, 15. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ Krešić, Hrvoje. "CROATIA: THE PRICE OF CORRUPTION" (PDF). Reuters Institute. Archived from the original on 3 August 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- 1 2 Kukutschka, Roberto Martinez B. (June 2021). Global Corruption Barometer European Union 2021: Citizen’s Views and Experiences of Corruption (Report). Berlin: Transparency International. Download the Report.
- 1 2 "The ABCs of the CPI: How the Corruption Perceptions Index is calculated". Transparency.org. 11 February 2025. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
- ↑ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2025: Global scores". Transparency.org. 10 February 2026. CPI2025. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
- ↑ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2025: Europe must step up leadership in the fight against corruption". Transparency.org. Retrieved 13 June 2025.
- ↑ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2025: Croatia". Transparency.org. Retrieved 3 July 2026.
- ↑ OECD (24 March 2026). "Anti‑Corruption and Integrity Outlook 2026: Croatia". www.oecd.org. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
Further reading
[edit]- "Croatia Is The Most Corrupt Country in Southeast Europe". Vedran Pavalic. Total Croatia News. Archived from the original on 21 January 2023. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
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