Croatia gets its first ministry of sustainable development

Croatia got its first ministry of sustainable development, which merged the sectors of environmental protection, energy and climate change, as well as economy, entrepreneurship and trade.

The head of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, which is the official name of the new department, is Tomislav Ćorić, who was until now Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy. Croatian media also call it “the mega-ministry” due to the large number of sectors for which it will be in charge.

The ministry is part of the second cabinet of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković. It was established by merging the Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Trade, which was led by Danko Horvat, and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Energy.

In the region, only Montenegro has a ministry for sustainable development, since 2006.

This is the second country in the region tracked by Balkan Green Energy News to establish the ministry of sustainable development. Montenegro has had it since the restoration of its independence in 2006. It is called the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism and it doesn’t include the energy sector, like in Croatia, but only the environment.

Ćorić: The development of the economy is no longer possible if it is not in line with sustainable development

Ćorić has a PhD in economics. He has been elected for minister twice so far. The first time was in 2016, when he was in charge of labor and the pension system. In 2017 he took over the sector of environmental protection and energy.

According to local media, the minister said the development of the economy is no longer possible without sustainable development.

Sustainable development must be the basis for the development of every national economy

Sustainable development must be the basis for the development of every national economy in the 21st century, and that is why it should not be surprising that the sectors of economy and sustainable development were merged, said Ćorić, HRT reported.

He also stated the current crisis has clearly indicated which way to go in order for the country to achieve self-sufficiency.

Croatia has the historical opportunity to position itself on the map of economically successful, environmentally sustainable and climate-neutral countries, he said.