Slovakia is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the southwest, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia’s mostly mountainous. The capital and largest city is Bratislava, while the second largest city is Košice.
Countries
Ireland
Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George’s Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth. Geopolitically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Ireland), which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. As of 2022, the population of the entire island is just over 7 million, with 5.1 million living in the Republic of Ireland and 1.9 million in Northern Ireland, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeast Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and the Black Sea to the southeast. Romania is the twelfth-largest country in Europe and the sixth-most populous member state of the European Union. Its capital and largest city is Bucharest, followed by Iași, Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara, Constanța, Craiova, Sibiu, Brașov, and Galați.
Malta
Malta is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Sicily and North Africa, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies 80 km (50 mi) south of Sicily (Italy), 284 km (176 mi) east of Tunisia, and 333 km (207 mi) north of Libya. The official languages are Maltese and English, and 66% of the current Maltese population is at least conversational in the Italian language.
Burundi
Burundi is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and East Africa. It is bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and southeast, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west; Lake Tanganyika lies along its southwestern border. The capital cities are Gitega and Bujumbura, the latter being the country’s largest city.
Latvia
Latvia is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the Baltic states; and is bordered by Estonia to the north, Lithuania to the south, Russia to the east, and Belarus to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Sweden to the west.
Estonia
Estonia is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Lake Peipus and Russia. The territory of Estonia consists of the mainland, the larger islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa, and over 2,200 other islands and islets on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea.
Germany
Germany is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between the Baltic and North seas to the north and the Alps to the south. Germany borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, and France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands to the west. The nation’s capital and the most populous city is Berlin, and its financial centre is Frankfurt; the largest urban area is the Ruhr.
Cyprus
Cyprus is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, south of the Anatolian Peninsula. Continentally, it is often geographically placed in Western Asia while being geopolitically placed in Southeast Europe. The third-largest and third-most populous island in the Mediterranean, it is located south of Türkiye, east of Greece, and west of Syria. Its capital and largest city is Nicosia.
Croatia
Croatia’s digital economy and society are steadily progressing, with Croatian citizens being above-average users of the internet and their digital skills improving. However, Croatia’s low connectivity performance could slow down the further development of its digital economy and society.
Croatia’s digital transformation is facing several challenges. According to the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) 2022, Croatia holds the 21st position. Croatia lags behind the EU average in terms of digital transformation.
Internet governance
Croatian stakeholders are active participants in various internet governance forums and initiatives at the regional and global levels. Croatian stakeholders participate in the annual South Eastern European Dialogue on Internet Governance (SEE+) and Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG) events, which bring together stakeholders from the region to discuss digital policy-related issues and challenges. At the global level, Croatia is a member of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF).
Croatian also has a national internet governance initiative called Croatian IGF, which was established as a bottom-up, multistakeholder platform for discussing internet-related public policy issues.
Digital strategies
Croatia has adopted several digital strategies in recent years to guide its digital transformation process.
- The Digital Croatia Strategy 2032 aims to drive Croatia’s digital transformation over the coming decade, focusing on enhancing the nation’s digital economy, digitizing public administration and justice systems, improving digital connectivity, and fostering digital skill development and employment opportunities. This strategy seeks to increase the share of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector in Croatia’s gross domestic product (GDP). The strategy aligns with the broader European Union’s vision for the digital decade and includes specific objectives such as reaching the EU average Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) rating by 2030. It also emphasizes the importance of digital skills training for all citizens.
- Croatia adopted the National Plan for Broadband Development 2021-2027 in 2021. The plan responds to the European Gigabit Society objectives 2025, partially the 2030 digital targets and the 5G for Europe Action Plan. The Croatian plan aims to provide connectivity with download speeds of at least 100 Mbps to all households while providing government offices and public buildings, such as schools and health facilities, with symmetric connections of at least 1 Gbps. It also seeks 5G networks in all main cities and towns and along major highways.
- The National Development Strategy is the national strategic action plan for 2018 to 2030, which aims to support the twin digital and green transitions of Croatian society and economy.
Cybersecurity
Croatia has taken several steps to enhance its cybersecurity capabilities and resilience in recent years.
- In Croatia, the Information Systems Security Bureau (ZSIS) serves as the national authority for network and information security. The country has two computer emergency response teams (CERTs): CARNet, and ZSIS CERT. ZSIS CERT is responsible for coordinating security and incident response for entities using a Croatian IP address or .hr domain. Additionally, the ZSIS CSI has jurisdiction over security matters in Croatian government institutions.
- On 15 February 2024, a new law on CYBERSECURITY LAW came into force. This law regulates procedures and measures to achieve a high common level of cybersecurity, criteria for categorizing key and important entities, cybersecurity requirements for key and important entities, specific requirements for managing domain name registration data and monitoring their implementation, voluntary mechanisms for cybersecurity, competent authorities in the field of cybersecurity and their tasks and powers, expert supervision over the implementation of cybersecurity requirements, penalty provisions, monitoring the implementation of this law, and other issues of importance to the field of cybersecurity.
- In 2015 the Government of Croatia adopted the National Cyber Security Strategy and the Action plan for the implementation of the Strategy. The strategy outlines several key objectives, including enhancing the security, resilience, and reliability of cyberspace, improving overall safety through a coordinated approach, strengthening the capacity to prevent and recover from cyber-attacks, promoting harmonized education programs and research in e-services, establishing effective information-sharing mechanisms, raising awareness among cyberspace users, fostering collaboration among institutions, developing a robust legal framework for the cyber dimension, and encouraging international cooperation in cybersecurity.
AI strategies and policies
Croatia has been working towards developing a national AI strategy. As of the available information, the final version of the Strategy for the Development of Artificial Intelligence of Croatia has not been completed.
Croatia has a growing AI industry, with the Croatian Artificial Intelligence Association (CroAI) being founded in 2019. CroAI brings together leading companies and startups in the field of AI in Croatia and seeks to position Croatia as a country of unique opportunities for the development of human-centric AI through a culture of dialogue between entrepreneurs and decision-makers at the national and European levels.
As of February 2020, CroAI had approximately 30 tech companies involved in the development of solutions based on AI technology, including Microsoft, IBM, Oracle, and A1.