A PROPOSAL FOR A NEW ADMINISTRATIVETERRITORIAL DIVISION OF THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA

The article deals with a proposal of a new administrative-territorial division at regional self-government level in the Republic of Croatia. The main aim of the paper is to obtain optimal administrative -territorial division of the country which would provide optimal performance of public tasks and responsibilities at the regional level. The proposal is obtained through use of multivariate statistical methods, and it is based on a wide number of demographic, economic, and public functions indicators measured on 20 Croatian counties. The main grouping criterion is importance and representatives of identified public functions' dimensions. As a result of the analysis, seven new regions are created and they should replace the existing 20 counties. Each of the obtained regions contains counties with similar characteristics and similar capacity for public function completion.