Notitia - journal for sustainable development

7

Authors: Vlatka Bilas; Mile Bošnjak

The main hypothesis of the paper states that the level of banking loans to private individuals growth rate correlates with the personal consumption growth rate in Croatia. Following the Engle-Granger cointegration and Johansen cointegration approaches on yearly data samples from 1996 to 2012, we found banking loan to private individuals annual growth rate and personal consumption annual growth rate in Croatia were cointegrated. According to estimates, there is empirical evidence for statistically significant, long-run and short-run levels of banking loans to private individuals growth rate having an effect on the personal consumption growth rate in Croatia. Given the low competitiveness of the domestic economy, the research results raise questions regarding the sustainability of a banking business in Croatia which is mainly oriented toward lending to private individuals, and the potential need to update banking regulations in Croatia. We found evidence of debt-financed consumption. In addition, the research results further illustrate the sensitivity of cointegration methods to deviations from the pure unit-root assumption, since unit-root tests cannot easily distinguish between a unit root and close alternatives.

13

Authors: Vlatka Bilas; Nina Borovac

The main aim of this study is to determine possible strategic guidance for increasing the effectiveness of implementing the development cooperation policy in the Republic of Croatia, bearing in mind its membership of the European Union and the fact that, since 2011, the Republic of Croatia has been officially classified as an international donor. Thus, taking into consideration the limited financial resources available for the implementation of this policy, the analysis in this study proposes a model of delegated cooperation as a possible strategic commitment on the part of the Republic of Croatia in policy implementation in the coming period. The delegated cooperation model should be considered in the context of the Republic of Croatia’s meeting its commitments towards the European Union and the global donor community, as well as guidance for alignment with current global donor trends in policy implementation. Furthermore, it should be seen as beneficial in terms of achieving the visibility of the Republic of Croatia as a donor country, its proliferation through comparative advantage, and the withdrawal of European Union funds in order to achieve its own benefits and ultimate fulfillment of global development goals. In order to achieve this, structural changes should be introduced regarding the necessary political commitments and appropriate institutional and procedural reforms. In this respect, the need to introduce changes in the existing political system of the Republic of Croatia should be considered.

14

Authors: Hrvoje Šimović; Ivan Matanović

The paper analyzes the determinates of the general government budget and the character of fiscal policy in Croatia, with special emphasis on the election period. In addition, the paper focuses on different factors that affect the size and structure of government revenues and expenditures, such as the European semester and political budget cycles. The main goal of the paper is to analyze potential Croatian budgetary policy during an election period under the Excessive Deficit and the Macroeconomic Imbalance procedures.

15

Authors: Sanja Franc

The main goal of this paper is to analyze intellectual property rights at the international level and draw conclusions about similarities and differences among international systems. For this purpose, intellectual property rights in the European Union (EU), United States and China were analyzed and compared. The analysis results show that there are common elements of intellectual property rights among the countries analyzed, which is to be expected, since they are all members of the World Intellectual Property Organization. However, certain differences exist, primarily in the degree of implementation and duration of rights. Since the EU ant the United States have the most developed systems of intellectual property rights, they have the most to lose by cooperating with countries with poor intellectual property rights systems. On the other hand, during the last few decades, China has emerged as a global leader and important trading partner. Although China is developing its system of intellectual property rights, many provisions are not being applied, or are misinterpreted in international cooperation due to language or other barriers, and this diminishes the desire for investment and technology transfer resulting in economic damage to firms holding original intellectual property rights.

17

Authors: Rajko Ostojić

Full enjoyment of the right to health is crucial for the enjoyment of other human rights, and has a central role in many other dimensions of sustainable development. In addition, human health is a consequence, but also a precondition of development, and is crucial to human welfare. Investment in health, especially prevention, fosters the economic output of a country through its effects on education achievements and skills acquirement, labour productivity and employment, increased savings and investments, demographic transition and the earth's ecosystem. This paper analyses the importance of health and efficient health systems in terms of sustainable development, and their role in Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals. Through sustainable development in the 21st century, the priority is to maximize health welfare for all age-groups, through universal health protection and pro-health policies in all sectors. Creating sustainable health care systems for the future demands reshaping the demand for health care services, diminishing the burden of illness, helping people to stay healthy, and empowering them to manage their own health.