Dubravka Jurlina Alibegović has been the director of the Economic Institute Zagreb (EIZ) since March, succeeding Sandra Švaljek in this position.
Her areas of interest include local and public finances, fiscal decentralization, and the relationship between the central government and local units. She joined the Institute in 1987, was the head of the Department of Public Finances and Financial Systems, and then replaced the Institute for two years with a position at the Ministry of Science and Technology as Deputy Minister in Račan’s government. She returned to the Institute in 2003 as the assistant director. Before taking over the leadership position, she was the head of the Department of Regional Economics. In an interview with Lider, she discusses her plans and ambitions, as well as the relationship between the state and local units.
• What are your plans at the helm of the Economic Institute Zagreb?
– The plans are ambitious and focused on creating research teams capable of conducting scientific research that thematically, content-wise, and methodologically keeps pace with global trends. The goal of implementing such research is to better understand economic and social processes and problems in Croatia and the region. I will encourage collaboration with scientists both domestically and internationally and maintain good relations with the business community and institutions in the public and civil sectors.
