RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, 2024

The share of research and development (R&D) expenditures in GDP in 2024 was 1.41%.

In 2024, a total of 1.2 billion euro was spent on R&D activity in the Republic of Croatia, which was an increase of 11.7% compared to the previous year.

Of the total funds intended for research and development, the largest share was spent in the City of Zagreb, which holds more than half of the total national funds (55.9%). It was followed by North Croatia (23.5%) and Adriatic Croatia (16.3%), while the smallest share of funds was spent in Pannonian Croatia (4.3%).

Observed by sectors, the business enterprise sector is dominated by the City of Zagreb (47.0%), while Adriatic Croatia (10.6%) and Pannonian Croatia (3.0%) record significantly lower shares. The government and private non-profit sector is characterised by centralisation in the City of Zagreb, which covers as much as 80.6% of expenditures. On the other hand, Pannonian Croatia (3.0%) and North Croatia (2.3%) record minimal shares. In the higher education sector, the City of Zagreb also has the largest share (59.0%), but almost a third of the funds (30.0%) are realised by Adriatic Croatia. The lowest share is recorded by North Croatia (3.0%).

More detailed data on research and development are available on the website of the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, at the link to the PC-AXIS database, where it is possible to view and print data in various formats. The final data differ slightly from the provisional ones due to more complete data sources and a more detailed analytical process.

NOTES ON METHODOLOGY

Purpose of the survey

The purpose of the Research and Development survey is to monitor R&D activities in the Republic of Croatia and production of internationally comparable data in full compliance with European standards – Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197 of 30 July 2020 laying down technical specifications and modalities pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics and repealing ten legal acts in the field of business statistics. In addition, methodological guidelines are defined by the Frascati Manual 2015 and the Methodological Manual on European Structural Business Statistics for R&D statistics (2023 edition).

Sources and methods of data collection

Data are the result of statistical processing of annual reports collected from legal units dealing with R&D in the Republic of Croatia in the 2024 calendar year. The units from the business enterprise sector filled out the Annual Report on R&D for Enterprises (IR-1 form), the government and private non-profit sector the Annual Report on R&D for Government and Private Non-Profit Sector (IR-2 form) and the institutions of higher education the Annual Report on R&D for Higher Education (IR-3 form). The forms were sent to the reporting units via electronic mail, along with general instructions and attachments required to fill out the forms. The reporting units returned the completed forms in the same way.

The reference period to which data on research and development refer is the entire 2024.

Pursuant to the Official Statistics Act (NN, Nos 25/20, 155/23, 124/25 – corr. and 69/26), the confidentiality of all data provided by the reporting units in the form is guaranteed. The data collected are used solely for statistical purposes and are published in aggregated form.

Observation units

The main observation unit/statistical unit for R&D in the business sector is the enterprise – a business entity that makes an organisational unit engaged in producing goods and/or services and benefits from a certain degree of autonomy, in accordance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 696/93 on the statistical units for the observation and analysis of the production system in the Community. Depending on the business and organisational situation, it may correspond to either one legal unit or a group of several legal units. In addition to legal units, enterprises also include free lances and crafts.

Each enterprise as a whole is assigned a code number of its principal activity according to the National Classification of Activities, 2007 version. The principal activity is determined and updated by the Statistical Business Register of the Croatian Bureau of Statistics.

For other sectors (government, private non-profit and higher education sector), the units of observation are still legal and natural persons.

Coverage and comparability

The statistical survey entitled Research and Development in 2024 covers legal units on the territory of the Republic of Croatia that are known or assumed to be engaged in the R&D activity.

Publishing

Provisional data are published within 11 months after the end of the reference (reporting) year. The final results for the entire set of variables are published within 19 months after the end of the reference (reporting) year. After publishing the data in the Republic of Croatia, they are also published by Eurostat.

Confidentiality

Aggregate data from which individual units can be identified (due to their small number) or to which the dominance rule or the secondary confidentiality rule apply, in line with the Official Statistics Act (NN, Nos 25/20, 155/23, 124/25 – corr. and 69/26) and the Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council, are treated as confidential and are, therefore, not published.

Definitions of variables and additional notes on methodology are available in the document Research and development ‒ Notes on Methodology.

Published by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, Zagreb, Ilica 3, P. O. B. 80
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Persons responsible:
Milenka Primorac Čačić, Director of Business Statistics Directorate
Lidija Brković, Director General

Prepared by:
Matija Škegro Vdović and Vjera Duić

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