Croatia's veterinary tender could close rural vet clinics

The Association of Veterinary Organizations of Croatia and the Citizen Initiative for the Rescue of Croatian Livestock sent an open letter to Prime Minister Andrej Plenković demanding the suspension of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Sea's public‑authority tender. They argue the tender threatens to shut down at least 15 rural veterinary ambulances and leave about 50 municipalities without a local veterinarian.

The association says the tender favours the size of organisations—measured by employee numbers—over actual field availability. For example, Veterinary Station Varaždin was awarded contracts for 22 municipalities, while smaller stations obtained only six, despite employing fewer staff. They also point to procedural irregularities: Varaždin's bid lacked the mandatory professional liability insurance yet was not rejected, and points were given for a technician without a qualifying exam, while a competing bid was dismissed for the opposite reason.

Agriculture Minister David Vlajić refused to halt the process on 1 July. The contested jobs are funded from the state budget, amounting to roughly €20 million. The association calls for a public report on the revenues of authorised veterinary organisations and for the tender criteria to be revised so that service availability on the ground becomes the decisive factor.