Country profile - Distinguishing factors (Croatia)

The overall area of Croatia is 87,661 km² of which 56,594 km² is land and 31,067 km² sea. According to the CLC 2006 Land Cover map, the majority of the total area is under forests and shrubs – 26,487.6 km² (46.8%). Bush and grass-covered surfaces cover 4,742.1 km² (8.4%). The total agricultural land is 22,841.1 km², of which heterogeneous agricultural areas account for 18,452 km² (32.6%), and plough land and permanent crops for 4,389.1; km2 (7.8%). Areas subject to human activity account for 1,774.5 km² (3.1%). Inland waters account for just 539.3 km² (0.95%), and marshland for 200 km² (0.4%) [2]. Islands occupy 3,259 km² (5.8% of the land area), forming the second largest archipelago in the Mediterranean. Croatia has a total of 1,185 islands, 47 of which are inhabited, 651 uninhabited, 389 are islets and 78 are reefs.

According to the latest 2001 Census, Croatia had approximately 4.44 million inhabitants, 56% of whom lived in urban areas. The 2005 birth rate was 9.6%, with decreasing population rate (-2.1%). According to projections of the average fertility rate including migrations, total population by 2050 should be 3.68 million, 80% of whom would live in urban areas [3].