Analysis of the Cultural and Creative Sectors in the Republic of Croatia

Commissioned by: Ministry of Culture and Media
Project duration: December 17, 2025 - June 17, 2026
Project manager: Tajana Barbić
Collaborators: Jelena Budak, Bruno Škrinjarić

Summary: 
Cultural and creative industries (CCI) represent an important and dynamic part of the Croatian economy, with a growing role in generating value added, employment, and innovation. The aim of this project is to systematically analyse the development and economic contribution of CCIs in the period 2021-2024, with a particular focus on value added, employment characteristics, and the financial performance of business entities operating within the sector. A comparative analysis of key indicators for 2024 will also be conducted in the context of the introduction of the new National Classification of Activities (NKD 2025), in order to assess its impact on sector coverage and data comparability over time. The methodological framework relies on advanced data management and analytics techniques, including automated merging, cleaning, coding, and classification of datasets, to ensure the production of reliable aggregated indicators for the cultural and creative industries. Beyond deepening the understanding of CCI performance in the post-pandemic period, the results of this research can serve as a foundation for designing more effective, data-driven, and targeted cultural policies.