Društveno poduzetništvo u Hrvatskoj: od prepoznavanja do primjene
Social Entrepreneurship in Croatia: From Recognition to Implementation

Summary/Abstract: This paper provides an overview of the development and a preliminary analysis of the current state of social entrepreneurship in Croatia. The topicality of that subject was boosted by the economic and even ecological crisis, as well as by governmental strategies related to social entrepreneurship. The first aim was to summarise the process of establishment and development of social entrepreneurship in Croatia, which occurred simultaneously with the transition process and accession to the European Union. The second aim was to present preliminary data from the established database of social entrepreneurship actors and their capacities. Research directed at the establishment of such a database was conducted in late 2014 and early 2015. Data about actors of social entrepreneurship was first gathered from the existing governmental and non-governmental bodies, which was followed by brief structured interviews with the key persons of the detected actors. The interviews inquired about their core businesses, income and employees. A part of the data was then validated by comparing it to the records of Croatia’s Financial Agency and the Registry of Non-Profit Organisations. The database included 90 subjects, most of which were associations and cooperatives (83%). More than a third of the actors were active in two Croatian counties (the Split-Dalmatia and Osijek-Baranja counties), while no such actors were detected in six counties. For more than a half of the actors, total annual income was less than one million Croatian kuna, but more than a half of the income of all the actors was generated through market-based entrepreneurial activities. In conclusion, social entrepreneurship in Croatia represents an increasingly important factor in the overall economic recovery even though it was developed without institutional support. Its capacity and potential is oriented towards a socially sensitive business model. The current governmental strategy on social entrepreneurship, as well as legislation that is in preparation, could stimulate a new wave of social entrepreneurship which was previously not possible due to a lack of overall institutional framework.

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