Who and What Holds Back Reforms in Croatia? – The Political Economy Perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors affecting
reform patterns in Croatia in order to identify the main
reasons for the (missing) reform success so far. The focus
is on the analysis of the political system, especially on
government fragmentation as one of the main features of
proportional electoral rule and clientelism. In addition to
political variables, economic factors are analysed as well.
The obtained results show that reforms in Croatia were
implemented during crises, that coalition governments
are not conducive to reforms and that clientelism and
corruption present significant obstacles for reform
implementation in Croatia. Moreover, the results show that
political cycles also have a significant effect, with reform
activity slowing down as elections approach. This article
contributes to the burgeoning debate on reform
implementation (in the post-socialist societies) from the
political economy perspective.