Main Croatian Urban Centres in the European NUTS Regionalisation Context

Abstract

In the modern architecture of the European NUTS regions, Croatia as a whole represents a NUTS-1 region. Since 2013, two regions have been defned at NUTS-2 level: Continental Croatia and Adriatic Croatia. At NUTS-3 level, the principle applies that each of the 21 Croatian counties represents a NUTS-3 region, although only half of them have more than 150, 000 inhabitants, and there are only eight large, functionally and logistically appropriate regional centres. These clearly demarcated, actual regional foci also exert gravitational influence beyond their counties, i.e. they are regional centers in the true sense of the word, according to NUTS-3 region criteria/ needs. These are: Zagreb, Split, Rijeka, Osijek, Zadar and Slavonski Brod (cities with more than 50, 000 residents, and with signifcant urban regions, generally over 100, 000 inhabitants, 2011: City of Zagreb 688, 724/1, 100, 000, Split 167, 121/280, 000, Rijeka 128, 384/230, 000, Osijek 84, 104/130, 000, Zadar 71, 471/125, 000, Slavonski Brod 53, 531/100, 000), with the seventh, the conurbation complex of Varaždin/Cakovec (38, 839+15, 147=53, 896/100, 000 residents), and the eighth, Pula (57, 460/80, 000) limited mainly to Istria [Istra] County. These centres, influencing broader regional gravity complexes (county and beyond county ; except Pula), with roughly 250, 000 to 550, 000 inhabitants, should form the main pillars and cores of the country’s modern regional structure, because this is already the case in reality. The damaging effects of war, economic recession, transition and privatisation after 1991 have resulted in the fact that most of the former, somewhat stronger centres have been depopulated and economically weakened, while the levels of their central functions have been lowered, reducing their gravitational power practically to the sub- regional level (Karlovac-Duga Resa, Sisak- Petrinja, Sibenik-Vodice, Dubrovnik- Mokosica, Bjelovar, etc.). Only the conurbation of VukovarVinkovci(26, 468+32, 029=65, 497/90, 000, in a demographically relatively prominent county, is potentially developing regional signifcance, however, it is signifcantly restricted, due to the close proximity of Osijek (Osijek – Vukovar 34 km, Osijek - Vinkovci 41 km). Consequently, there is contemporary orientation of the less populated counties: Dubrovnik-Neretva to Split, Sibenik- Knin to Zadar, Lika-Senj to Zadar (to a lesser extent to Rijeka), Požega-Slavonija to Slavonski Brod, Virovitica-Podravina to Osijek, Koprivnica-Križevci and Međimurje to Varaždin, Bjelovar-Bilogora, KrapinaZagorje, Karlovac and Sisak-Moslavina to Zagreb. Given the signifcant demographic corpus and relatively prominent number of counties gravitating to Zagreb, it would be advisable to revitalise the functional equipment of some individual cities in the wider area around Zagreb. This means accepting the necessity of equipping Karlovac/Sisak (two counties), and Bjelovar/Virovitica (two counties) for regional level functions, facilitating the revitalisation of these demographically and functionally weakened areas, which form individual NUTS-3 regions.