From Precedent to Paradigm: Sustainability and Tourism Competitiveness under the NextGenerationEU

Authors

Srđan Kerčević
University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5435-829X
Mirjana Kovačić
University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3470-1679
Ana Perić Hadžić
University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6965-9004
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18690/um.fov.3.2026.21

Synopsis

The NextGenerationEU (NGEU) instrument was launched in 2021 as the European Union's unprecedented response to turbulent global crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic and economic downturns. Its purpose is to bring about a new economic model centered on sustainable development and higher competitiveness. Despite its ambitious scope, the EU's economic growth continues to lag, necessitating substantial annual investments. This paper will provide comparative analysis of the implementation effectiveness and real-world impact of NGEU in fostering sustainable development, green transition, and investments in tourism across member states focusing on nett recipient countries, Croatia and Slovenia. It addresses how NGEU is absorbed, translated into outcomes, and identifies challenges in achieving its goals especially in tourism sector. This paper conducts a large-scale quantitative analysis of secondary sources, comparing planned and realized investments, focusing on green and digital transitions, and examining absorption rates dynamics within EU member states.

Author Biographies

Srđan Kerčević, University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management

Srđan Kerčević, Master in Political Science and PhD student at the University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management. Srđan is a Member of Team Europe Direct, experienced in political analysis and information and communication. Since 2017, Srđan lectures European Union and International Relations at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences University of Zagreb and has coauthored several papers related to EU and sustainable development.

Opatija, Croatia. E-mail: srkercevic@gmail.com

Mirjana Kovačić, University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies

Mirjana Kovačić, PhD, full professor at University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies. She has contributed to numerous publications focusing on coastal managing, maritime spatial planning (domain), nautical tourism and sustainable, green development. Mirjana is an active member of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts’ Scientific Council for Maritime Affairs and the Croatian Scientific Society for Transport.

Rijeka, Croatia. E-mail: mirjana051@gmail.com

Ana Perić Hadžić, University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies

Ana Perić Hadžić, PhD, dean and full professor at University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies. She has participated as project researcher and project manager on several EU projects (Erasmus+, FP7, FP6, Interreg, IPA CBC, ESF, Horizon) and many professional projects and studies related to maritime transport, research and industry. She published more than forty scientific and professional papers that directly contributed to debates on transport and logistics, seaport organization and management, ports financing, port economics, PPP in port community.

Rijeka, Croatia. E-mail: ana.peric@pfri.uniri.hr

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Volume

45th International Conference on Organizational Science Development: Organization and the Longevity Society, Conference Proceedings

Pages

279-292

Published

March 17, 2026

Series

Razvoj organizacijskih znanosti

Categories

Copyright (c) 2026 University of Maribor, University of Maribor Press

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Kerčević, S., Kovačić, M., & Perić Hadžić, A. (2026). From Precedent to Paradigm: Sustainability and Tourism Competitiveness under the NextGenerationEU. In P. Šprajc, D. Maletič, N. Petrović, I. Iztok, A. Škraba, D. Tomić, & A. Žnidaršič Mohorič (Eds.), & (Ed.), 45th International Conference on Organizational Science Development: Organization and the Longevity Society, Conference Proceedings (Vols. 45., pp. 279-292). University of Maribor Press. https://doi.org/10.18690/um.fov.3.2026.21