Basic facts

Official name: Republic of Croatia

Location: Central Europe.

Surface: 56542 km2

Territorial sea surface: 31067 km2

Population: 4,551,000

Capital: Zagreb, 641 km2 (population 779145)

Administrative divisions: 20 counties and 1 city

Border length: 2197 km

Borders: Slovenia, Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Italy

Lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m

Highest point: Dinara 1,830 m

Population density: 80,49/km2

Geographical position: 45-10 N, 15-30 E

Local time: GMT+1 hour in winter, GMT+2 hours in summer

Government: multy party parliamentary republic since 1991

Coastline: 5835 km

GDP: $59,334 billion

GDP per capital: $14,285

Major cities: Zagreb, Osijek, Rijeka, Split

Official language: Croatian

Currency: 1 Kuna(HRK) = 100 Lipa

Electricity: 220V, frequency 50HZ, European plug with two circular metal pins

Country Dialing Code: 385

Flag: red, white and blue horizontal stripes with Croatian Coat of Arms in the centre

Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a Central European and Mediterranean country. The country shares borders with Slovakia and Hungary to the north, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herzegovina on the south and east, and Montenegro to the south. Croatia shares a long maritime border with Italy to the west, in the Adriatic Sea. Croatia is a candidate for membership in the European Union and the NATO.

The country covers 56,542 square kilometres, the population is estimated to count 4.551.000 people, including the 780.000 people living in Zagreb, the capital and the economic, traffic, cultural and academic centre of the country. Other significant population centres are Osijek in the northwest, and the ports of Rijeka, and Split in the south. Nearly 90% of the population is Croat, the largest minority is the Serbs (4,5%), but there are also Bosnian, Hungarian and Italian minorities. The official language is Croatian, the alphabet used is Latin.

The economy of Croatia is based on services, tourism, and light industry. The most serious problem affecting the economy is high unemployment. The country expects faster economic growth and a boom of investments in the following years.