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1. National strategy(ies)

2. Promoting and supporting sport and physical activity among young people

3. Physical education in schools

4. Collaboration and partnerships

National Strategy(ies)

In Croatia, a number of regulations and documents address physical activity, but there is currently no national document specifically providing physical activity recommendations for young people. However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) Physical Activity Guidelines and American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) Physical Activity Recommendations are being followed in this regard.

A new School Sport Strategy is currently in development. In Croatia, sport as an activity is regulated by the Sports Act.

The Sports Act

The Sports Act was published on 2nd December 2022. The issuing body is the Ministry of Tourism and Sport (MTS). The key objectives are:

• regulation of sports and sporting activities, professional sports, sporting competitions, sport financing, supervision, and other relevant issues for the sports sector
• defining sport based on the principle of volunteering
• defining sport as equally accessible to anyone, regardless of age, race, sex, religion, nationality, social status, political or other beliefs
• defining sport as an activity of special significance for the Republic of Croatia 

In the Republic of Croatia, the promotion of sports development involves constructing and maintaining sports facilities, educating and training professional staff, conducting scientific projects in the field of sports, implementing economic measures, encouraging partnerships among government, non-governmental organisations in sports and private entrepreneurship, as well as providing financial support for sports through state, local, and regional self-government units and the City of Zagreb.

The Action Plan for Development of Cyclotourism

The Action Plan for the Development of Cyclotourism was published in October 2015. The issuing body was the MTS. The document considers cyclotourism broadly, encompassing various activities such as tourist bicycle trips, cycling excursions, additional sports recreational bicycle riding, sports events, and occasional driving. Additionally, the Action Plan takes into consideration the needs of the local population using bicycles as a mode of transport recreation. It also addresses the development of cycling infrastructure in larger cities and their immediate surroundings. Cyclotourism is especially important for the development of continental tourism and for pre- and post-season tourism.

The National Plan for the Development of Bicycle Traffic

The newly developed National Plan for the Development of Bicycle Traffic 2023-2027, along with the associated Action Plan 2023-2025, has been formulated by the Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure. The priorities outlined in the National Plan pertain to the construction and renovation of bicycle infrastructure, ensuring investments for such projects, amending and improving the legislative framework, and implementing national media campaigns to promote safe bicycle traffic. The plan highlights two specific goals: increasing the use of bicycles for daily trips and enhancing the safety of cyclists in traffic. 

The Bicycle Training Programme 2016

The issuing body for the Bicycle Training Programme 2016 is the Ministry of Science and Education (MSE). The Bicycle Training Programme is implemented in primary schools and institutions that provide education and training for children and young people, as well as in the organisations providing leisure activities for children and young people. The programme is primarily intended for fifth-grade primary school students who have been selected to participate. The examination is conducted in cooperation with teachers, Croatian Auto Club (HAK) or other auto clubs, and police officers. By adopting the programme, fifth-grade students are offered the opportunity to acquire additional competencies that contribute to their safer participation in traffic. Additionally, they have the opportunity to undergo bicycle exams and obtain a certificate of competency for bicycle riding.

Promoting and supporting sport and physical activity among young people

The programme promoting and supporting sport and physical activity among young people in Croatia is the National Programme Healthy Living. Through the programme component Physical Activity and Health, the goal is to promote sports and physical activity. While walking remains the most popular physical activity, with benefits far surpassing those of other activities, its prevalence is still on the decline. The analyses indicate that fewer and fewer children walk to school, and a similar trend is observed in adults, with a decreasing number of individuals choosing to walk to their workplace. There are no obstacles to including more walking into our daily routines, preferably in a natural environment, aiming to reduce the risk of disease and enhance or maintain health.

Community activities aim to inform and raise awareness among all age groups in the population of Croatia about the positive aspects of physical activity. Additionally, these activities offer and initiate organised walking groups (circular) for both one-time and regular participants. This project is intended to be integrated into the international project The Walk of the World and establish future cooperation with other participating countries. The project also includes volunteer education on the criteria for determining and marking walking trails, as well as on ways of implementing this physical activity. This project envisions the cooperation of the Ministry of Health, the MTS, the Croatian Tourist Board, the Croatian Employers' Association, and the Faculty of Kinesiology in Zagreb. All public health institutes actively participate in the implementation of this project.

Following the implementation of the Walking towards Health project in all counties, the Croatian Public Health Institute will consolidate all gathered data and evaluate the project. Further cooperation will be arranged, in the sense of educating more volunteers and participants. Additionally, an annual calendar will be created, containing regular (at least once a week) Walking towards Health activities in all counties of the Republic of Croatia. This information will be available on websites of all local tourist boards and their partners. Besides this, once a year, a date will be chosen for simultaneous walking events to take place in all counties on pre-selected walking trails.

The basic intention of the project is to provide an activity accessible to all citizens of Croatia, irrespective of their ethnic descent, religion, sex, territorial position, minority affiliation, or disability. This would provide every individual with an equal possibility to enhance their health and socialise in a healthy environment, with support personnel assisting in the integration of individuals with special needs. The plan is to achieve this through single and multi-day summits and programme presentations in various environments.

These programmes are also envisaged to be implemented in natural settings. For this to be possible, it is necessary to adapt and clean external spaces where the programme will take place. The project anticipates activities involving the preparation, adaptation, and development of walking trails, with the participation of the local community, citizens, and environmental volunteering associations.

Also planned is the active cooperation and inclusion of mountaineering and sporting associations and clubs through sports events, competitions, and presentations of various sporting activities.

Physical education in schools

The goal of physical and health education is to fulfil the biopsychosocial need for movement, enhance creative abilities, and adapt to contemporary living conditions and work. 

Existing national and strategic documents in the field of education in Croatia include: 

Act on Education in Primary and Secondary Schools

The issuing body is the MSE. The Act came into effect in 2008 and regulates the activities of primary and secondary education as well as education in public institutions. It is a singular and foundational act that unifies the same activities, goals, principles, organisation, and rights of the immediate holders of educational activities (teachers and educators) and participants in the educational process (students) at the elementary and secondary education levels. It assumes that a series of bylaws will be drafted to ensure a more in-depth and detailed elaboration of the authority and responsibility of educational participants in all segments of the educational activity. It is innovative in its goals and principles of education, pedagogical measures, the structure of the school network, planning, the purpose of school establishment, and external evaluation. The Act encourages the integration of disadvantaged pupils into the educational system, prescribes equal access and equal conditions of education and training for children belonging to national minorities, and provides teaching assistance to children of European Union citizens. 

Strategy for the Construction and Development of the National Curriculum for Preschool, General Compulsory and Secondary School Education

The issuing body is the MSE. The Strategy was introduced in 2007. Accepting the curriculum approach implies the development of a national curriculum, preceded by an efficiency evaluation of all immediate actors in the field of education. This process includes the redefinition of education at all levels to meet the developmental needs of Croatian society, considering a broader European and global context.

The Strategy for the Construction and Development of the National Curriculum for Preschool, General Compulsory and Secondary School Education contains propositions for guidelines and methods to enhance education within the Croatian social context. It also provides suggestions on establishing a quality education system, with special emphasis on components related to the creation and implementation of the national curriculum for preschool, general compulsory, and secondary school education. The Strategy contains expert suggestions on how to modernise, upgrade, and improve the quality of the education system. The Strategy is a developmental document open to changes and improvements depending on the needs and developmental tendencies in the education area, as well as on the various studies and evaluation results.

State Pedagogical Standard for Primary Education System

The former Ministry of Science, Education and Sport Issued the document in 2008. The State Pedagogical Standard for Primary Education System in the Republic of Croatia establishes minimum infrastructure, financial, and human resources conditions for the realisation and development of activities, ensuring uniform development of primary education across the country. Thus, the conditions necessary for the realisation of the teaching of Physical Education are prescribed.

National Curriculum Framework for Preschool Education, General Compulsory and Secondary School Education

The Framework was introduced in 2010 by the MSE. The preparation of the National Curriculum Framework was set as one of the priorities of the Croatian education policy, since this document enables the harmonisation and integration of all elements of the system. The National Curriculum Framework is a fundamental document that determines all essential elements of the education system, from the pre-school level to the completion of secondary education.

The basic characteristic of the National Curriculum Framework is a transition to a system based on competences and student achievement (learning outcomes), unlike the previous (i.e., current) one, which emphasise content. Applying the National Curriculum Framework results in the harmonisation of all levels of education preceding the higher-education level (which has changed its system by introducing the Bologna process).

Act on Higher Education

The issuing body is the MSE. This Act regulates the establishment of higher education institutions, the establishment, evaluation, and financial support of their activities, the organisation and performance of university and professional studies, and the position of students and teachers. It regulates the status of scientific research institutes and libraries, as well as other legal entities whose activities support the operation of higher education systems when established within higher education institutions. The Act has been in effect since 1996.

Croatian Qualifications Framework

The issuing body is the MSE. The Croatian Qualifications Framework is a reform instrument for regulating the system of qualifications at all levels in the Republic of Croatia. It utilises qualifications standards based on learning outcomes, aligning with the needs of the labour market, individuals, and society. It was introduced in 2013.

Curriculum for Primary School

The issuing body is the MSE. The Curriculum was issued in 2013. The basic level of education is related to imparting knowledge to students and developing the competencies necessary for various roles in adulthood. This document presents educational values and goals for elementary school and outlines the basic determinants for achieving teaching in accordance with educational changes. It covers various aspects such as the forms of school and teaching work, strategies for working with gifted students and pupils with developmental disabilities, as well as educational forms and methods for extracurricular activities. Additionally, it addresses the education and vocational training of school and teaching staff. The role and function of the immediate participants in school and teaching work are also presented, outlining expectations regarding their involvement in reflection and the implementation of activities for the overall improvement of the educational work both within and outside the school.

Grammar and Vocational Schools Curriculum

The MSE is the issuing institution. The Curriculum for Physical Education for Grammar and Vocational Schools includes:

• Purpose and Goal
• Programme Content:
  • Basic Programme
  • Supplementary Programme:
    • Physical and Health Care Framework for pupils and students who, for health reasons, must have a special programme
    • Physical Education Programme for students in the period of health recovery
• Didactical instructions

As in other subjects, the Physical and Health Culture Curriculum is an official document based on the development of kinesiological science and defines the contents that students must adopt. In addition to the aforementioned frameworks, the programme that promotes and supports physical education among young people in Croatian schools is the National Programme Healthy Living.

Through the Health Education programme component, the goal is to promote proper nutrition and physical activity to prevent overweight and obesity. In addition to educating teachers and students on the basics of proper nutrition, access to such nutrition will be provided in accordance with the adopted National Guidelines for Nutrition in Primary Schools. These guidelines prescribe groups of normative menus balanced depending on the nutrition and energy needs of the students as well as the season and seasonal availability of certain foods. Alongside additional education of teachers and students on the importance of physical activity for preserving health, physical activity will be stimulated by two additional programmes: daily 10-minute exercise routines and the introduction of training polygons for school children. The primary objective of daily exercise is to cultivate healthy lifestyle habits and promote regular physical activity. General training exercises have a great impact on maintaining proper posture, which is an important prerequisite for the well-being of the entire organism. These exercises are designed for students in the first four grades of primary schools and would be conducted in classrooms in ten-minute intervals. Exercise intensity is tailored to the spatial constraints. Physical activity polygons have been conceived as an additional programme for implementing physical education in Croatian primary schools that lack the necessary material, technical, or spatial conditions. The polygon is a set of didactic equipment comprising 25 elements optimised for their purpose through composition, shape, dimension, and characteristics, allowing easy handling and transport.

Collaboration and partnerships

Depending on individual strategic documents, programmes, strategies, or other health system frameworks, cross-institutional partnerships are defined for each specific area. Some programmes also envision cooperation with the education system, social welfare system, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). For example, the National Programme Healthy Living proposes implementation partnerships with: 

• the Ministry of Science and Education
• the Ministry of Tourism and Sport
• the Ministry of Agriculture
• the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy
• the Ministry of the Interior
• the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development
• the Office for Cooperation with NGOs of the Croatian Government
• the Croatian Health Insurance Fund
• medical and kinesiology faculties
• the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology
• the Education and Teacher Training Agency
• the Croatian Employers’ Association
• the Croatian Chamber of Economy
• the Croatian Chamber of Trades and Crafts
• the Croatian Tourist Board
• the Croatian Food Agency
• the Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Croatia
• the Independent Trade Unions of Croatia
• the Association of Croatian Trade Unions
• the Croatian Trade Union Association 

The programme also includes the participation of health-friendly partners: 

• kindergartens
• primary and secondary schools
• companies

Financing through strategic documents is defined in their content, primarily from the state budget in accordance with the department’s area financing. Additionally, some programmes are financed through the European Social Fund, with a partial emphasis on inter-sectorial cooperation.