In the last two decades, the general objectives of Croatian cultural policy have included the pursuance of values such as: cultural pluralism (aesthetic and multi-ethnic), creative autonomy, increase and diversification of sources for financing of culture, polycentric cultural development, encouraging cultural participation and co-operation between the public and the private sector. Such cultural policy orientation is in line with the main objectives of the Convention providing for a solid basis for early adoption of the Convention – Croatian Parliament was the first European Parliament to ratify the Convention in 2006. This provided for a continuous influence of the Convention visible in cultural policy instruments in the next decade. This is also evident in the current cultural policy, where additional new measures are supplementing the overall policy orientation in -line with the Convention.
Cultural policy objectives in Croatia are centred on the principles of promoting identity and diversity, supporting creativity and participation in cultural life. These principles are being put into practice in the following way:
• diversification by encouraging cultural creativity and innovation; tolerance and inclusion of cultural minority groups, and by financing activities of various cultural interests; from high culture, alternative culture, through ethnic cultures, etc.;
• support to creativity through fiscal measures such as paying social, health and retirement benefits for registered freelance artists, and support to participation by funding amateur artists' associations; and
• identity affirmation and dynamic reconstruction through interplay between cultural traditions and cultural development.
Croatia has made attempts to address the opportunities and challenges brought about by digitization processes; from supporting digitization programmes in cultural institutions and organizations, furthering cooperation with the Europeana project, towards attempts at setting up a sustainable single heritage information system. In the last couple of years as one of more extensive projects that addressed the challenges that the digital environment brings for the cultural and media sector was the project of the ‘Digitization of arthouses, small and regional cinemas’. The main objective of the measure was to digitize the network of independent cinemas (arthouses, small and regional cinemas) in different parts of Croatia, so as to enable easier and wider spread distribution of audio-visual content. In the period 2013-2016 the project resulted in the digitization of 56 cinema halls and six film festivals in 18 counties and 27 cities.