A seemingly very complicated area, for which Minister Damir Habijan, the Minister of Justice, Administration, and Digital Transformation, is responsible, is conducting numerous projects aimed at improving the current situation and implementing new plans in the upcoming period. In an interview with Diplomacy & Commerce magazine, Minister Habijan also talks in detail about the Trg pravde (Justice Square) project in Zagreb, the largest infrastructure project in the judiciary. He discusses what the ministry is doing to implement the European Court of Justice’s ruling, which declared that Croatia’s mechanism for aligning judicial practices is contrary to European law. Another topic is the 2030 Policy Programme “Path to the Digital Decade”. According to the Minister, modernizing Croatia’s public administration and efficiently delivering public services are prerequisites for a favorable entrepreneurial environment and better living conditions for all citizens.
- How would you rate the situation in Croatia’s judiciary today? The Ministry is investing great effort to improve every segment in this field, from free legal aid, new laws regarding domestic violence, the Commercial Companies Act, etc. What would you single out as crucial in this area?
The judiciary is a specific area with a set framework where the room for maneuver is quite limited. What falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry is the legislative framework, which we can change, adapt, and improve. However, the stakeholders within that legal framework are mostly independent and autonomous, including judges, public prosecutors, and to some extent even lawyers and notaries, who are independent professionals. Therefore, the ability to act in this area is more constrained than, for instance, in the economy, where you can be quite creative. From day one, I expressed my desire to establish communication with the judges, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, as well as with lawyers and public notaries. The state of the judiciary is influenced not only by challenges like the number of cases being handled in courts but also by circumstances arising from the obligations we’ve undertaken as a member of the European Union and certain global trends. The real situation is quite complex, but not as bad as it is often portrayed in public. It is crucial that people in the field point out what they are struggling with and what should be changed in the legislative sense, by providing their inputs, suggestions, and comments. And that is a fine, delicate balance that all of us involved in the process should maintain.
2. Justice Square in Zagreb is the largest judicial infrastructure project. What does it include and when can we expect the works to be finished and the square put into use?
The Justice Square – Phase project I in Zagreb is an extremely important infrastructure project that will transform the judicial landscape. It will provide new facilities for the Commercial Court in Zagreb, the High Commercial Court of the Republic of Croatia, the Administrative Court in Zagreb, the High Administrative Court of the Republic of Croatia, the Judicial Academy, and the Center for Peaceful Dispute Resolution. The project will ensure better working conditions and changes in the judiciary that will contribute to improved court performance.
The selected location allows for the construction of a large complex that can accommodate all necessary facilities and is well connected to public transportation. The southern building will cover approximately 25,000 square meters, and the underground garage will provide about 1,300 parking spaces.
Funding for Phase I of this project is secured through the 2021-2026 National Recovery and Resilience Plan, under component C2.5, “A Modern Judiciary Ready for Future Challenges.” The value of the work contracted with the consortium of ING GRAD d.o.o. and KAMGRAD d.o.o. amounts to 119.8 million euros plus VAT, with the expected completion of Phase I of the Justice Square in Zagreb scheduled for the third quarter of 2026.
The idea for the Justice Square project originated in the early 2000s within the then Ministry of Justice. The first step in planning this project was taken in 2007, when an architectural competition was held, with the winning design by Davor Bušnja, Zrinka Mrković-Mračić, and Vedran Škopac. However, the project stalled until 2021, when the government included it in the 2021-2026 National Recovery and Resilience Plan.
- The Court of Justice of the European Union has issued a ruling declaring the Croatian mechanism for harmonizing judicial practice to be in violation of European law. What is the Ministry doing to address this, and how does this decision impact the everyday lives of citizens and businesses?
The implementation of this ruling into the national legal framework raises several open questions, such as the potential need to introduce an expanded panel in the criminal branch of the judiciary and into appellate courts, following its introduction in the Civil Procedure Act for cases before the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia. Additionally, there are considerations regarding the composition of the expanded panel.
Therefore, it is essential to first amend the Courts Act, particularly the sections related to the work of judicial department sessions and plenary sessions of all judges, and to establish alternative mechanisms for harmonizing judicial practice. There is also a need to consider amendments to the fundamental procedural laws, especially the Civil Procedure Act and the Criminal Procedure Act.
Given the complexity of this issue, but also recognizing the necessity of ensuring the uniform application of the law, which is a key component of the rule of law, finding appropriate solutions to establish mechanisms for harmonizing judicial practice that meet the criteria outlined in the EU Court’s ruling of July 11, 2024, and comply with the requirements regarding judicial independence set out in Article 19 of the EU Treaty, requires collaboration and input from the expert community, particularly representatives of the judiciary, as well as the academic community. For this reason, meetings were held with relevant judicial stakeholders to discuss this matter.
- You recently participated in a meeting of the Working Group for the first update of the 2030 Policy Programme “Path to the Digital Decade”. This is a strategic document for the digital decade that outlines the ways and measures by which Croatia will achieve the set European digital goals. What are these measures?
The document contains 30 measures outlined in the strategic 2030 Policy Programme “Path to the Digital Decade”, which the Croatian Government adopted in March of this year. The creation of this document was a requirement for all EU member states. The European Union embarked on this path with the goal of strengthening its own digital sovereignty and setting its standards for the new digital age.
Croatia’s contribution is embedded in 30 measures, organized across 12 defined digital goals. These include ensuring that 80% of citizens possess basic digital skills, employing 20 million information and communication technology (ICT) professionals within the Union, promoting women’s access to this field, providing gigabit network coverage to all end users at fixed locations, covering all populated areas with high-speed wireless networks, and ultimately ensuring that 75% of businesses use cloud computing services.
We have already achieved one digital goal (the eleventh), which is that all adult citizens have access to their electronic health records through the Health Portal.
To advance the digitalization of public services for citizens and businesses by 2030, plans include improving the national information infrastructure, standardizing and digitizing public services, establishing a centralized user support system for e-Services, and developing a digital mobile platform.
- The 2023 Report on the work and development of the national information infrastructure includes projects aimed at achieving the goals defined in the e-Croatia 2020 Strategy, activities from the 2021-2026 National Recovery and Resilience Plan related to digitalization, and activities realized through the “Development of e-Services” call. How far has Croatia progressed in the process of digitalization and e-transformation, and what still needs to be done?
The focus of digitalization is on improving the quality of life for citizens and enhancing the competitiveness of the economy. One of the largest IT infrastructure projects in the country—the establishment of the Shared Services Center—has been completed. A Unified Contact Center for all e-public services has been established to provide user support, and interoperability between IT systems has been improved, with data exchange increasing 26-fold, from 6,863,850 to 178,506,507 transactions. A new Digital Croatia Strategy until 2032 has been adopted, and to monitor the implementation of digital transformation guidelines, the National Council for Digital Transformation has been established. Additionally, a National Coordination Center for Industry, Technology, and Research in the field of cyber-security has been founded.
In 2023, remaining projects such as the Open Data Portal and the Implementation of e-Standards, defined by the e-Croatia 2020 Strategy, were completed at a cost of €42,782,210.42, fulfilling the goals of that Strategy.
- 6. You and your colleague, Minister Ante Šušnjar, have been appointed members of the Council for negotiations with MOL regarding the potential buyback of shares held by that Hungarian company in INA. How much room is there for maneuvering, and what are the possibilities for buying back those shares, given MOL’s previous stance and behavior, and how long is this process expected to take?
I was appointed as a member of the Council for negotiations with MOL regarding the possible buyback of shares held by MOL in INA back in January of this year, during my previous role as Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development. Upon assuming the position of Minister of Justice, Administration, and Digital Transformation, I remained a member of the Council in this capacity.
Energy policy, including the management of state-owned energy companies, is primarily under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy, and this also pertains to the governance rights in INA.
- When discussing the development of public administration, what would you identify as the biggest challenges, and how can they be addressed? Additionally, what are you most proud of in this area?
The modernization of Croatia’s public administration and the effective provision of public services are essential for creating a favorable entrepreneurial environment and improving the quality of life for all our citizens. Along with the legislative and strategic framework, we constantly monitor the situation and emerging needs stemming from new social circumstances.
In this context, we are striving to leverage the opportunities provided by digital transformation to enhance our business processes and public services, with a key goal of reducing the administrative burden for both citizens and businesses.
I would like to highlight several services that have particularly facilitated access to public administration. These include the e-Novorođenče service, which allows parents to electronically register the birth of their child, the e-Prijava vjenčanja and e-Prijava životnog partnerstva services, which enable the electronic submission of marriage or life partnership registration, and the important tool for the electoral process — access to the Voter Registry, where citizens can check their registration status.
Although we have digitized many services, we must still cater to the needs of citizens who prefer direct, in-person interaction, ensuring that services remain available in physical form. For instance, in 2023, 25,226 births were registered in civil registry offices, while 3,605 were submitted via e-services. Similarly, 16,480 marriage intentions were registered in person, while 1,241 were done electronically.
We’ve noticed a growing trend in the use of the e-Citizens system, which now has over two million users. Citizens currently have access to more than 100 e-services, and given this trend, we will continue to develop and expand electronic services.
Regarding local and regional government, we have developed a Unified IT System, a database on the capacities of local and regional self-government units, which allows for collection, aggregation and processing of data based on which administrative and financial capacities can be determined, as well as other capacities necessary to ensure the quality and efficiency of services within their legally defined responsibilities.