PUBLIC SECTOR PROPERTY MANAGEMENT REFORM TO ENHANCE THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: CROATIA AND BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA CURRENT STATE AND INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES

Abstract

Property asset management can be defined as the process of decision – making and implementation relating to the acquisition, use, and disposition of real property. This definition applies to both the private and public sectors, even though in the government sector, the term itself was not in common usage until recently. Over last two decades, however, a new discipline has emerged that looks more critically at the important component of public wealth and seeks to apply standards of economic efficiency and effective organizational and resource management. Public sector property management has been regarded as a structured process that seeks to ensure best value for money in serving the strategic public sector needs and enhancing the economic development and competitiveness. There are governments that are only beginning to seek improvements in the management of publicly owned property with a goal of putting into use various types of government asset items, under the supervision of professional management, with a view to ensuring quality public services and welfare to the citizens, governments that have just recently embarked in the long term financial management reforms and strategic public sector property management reform in particular, and governments called “advanced reformers” offering their conceptual and valuable practical experience in the sphere of public property management. Starting from the concept that public authorities have to be fully accountable to the public and that the whole of government assets need and can be effectively managed, and widely accepted thesis that effective government asset management is a very important generator for creating a supportive entrepreneurial environment, and raising the competitiveness of the entire economy, in this paper we analyse the drivers of international property management reforms in the public sector and provide a comment on public sector property management in developed countries and (post) transition countries. Then we analyse the characteristics of commenced public sector property management reform in Croatia which may be considered as challenges ahead of Bosnia and Herzegovina authorities in structuring their national public sector property management reform, given the current state of play.