The Lisbon Strategy in the Wider European Context communications, recommendations and other sources of“soft law”. It is also the subject of consultation fora and exchange of good practice measures. The screening process highlighted some of the areas in which Croatia should start with preparations to implement Lisbon Strategy goals. Primarily these“soft” obligations start with the need to adopt horizontally the Lisbon Agenda instruments, in order to be able to implement policy measures practically. At the beginning, it means introducing the Lisbon principles into the country's strategic documents. Different to many new member states or acceding countries, Croatia did not prepare“in advance” an action programme to implement the Lisbon Strategy goals in the period before membership was achieved 6 . However, some of the aims and the activities leading to its implementation have been introduced in different strategic documents that were prepared during previous years, after 2000 7 . The most recent Croatian Government strategic document prepared by the Central Office for Development Strategy and Coordination of EU Funds (CODEF), the Strategic Development Framework 2006-2013 8 , to a great extent introduced Lisbon goals. The document starts from the assumption that economic openness, competitiveness, change in the traditional role of the state, inclusion of all social strata in the results of economic growth and prosperity are basic premises for the completion of Croatia's main strategic goal in the next seven years: growth and employment in a competitive market economy acting within a European welfare state 9 . This strategic goal, according to the document mentioned, is envisaged to be achieved through harmonised and simultaneous 6. There are many examples among new member states showing that the initial Lisbon Strategy action plans were prepared in the pre-accession stage, either by the government bodies(Slo­venia) or non-governmental organisations(Romania). 7. For example, the Croatian Government prepared a number of sectoral strategic documents under the common title“Croatia in the 21st Century”, and some of them are very much in line with Lisbon goals. This particularly relates to strategy covering science and research, which approaches the issues of the knowledge-based society, and catching up with innovation and new technologies(Croatian Government, 2003). Key Lisbon goals are introduced in 55 recommen­dations of the National Competitiveness Council, covering all the areas relevant for raising the level of competitiveness in Croatia, including education, innovation and technology develop­ment, strengthening of SMEs, creating leadership, etc.(National Competitiveness Council, 2004). 8. The Strategic Development Framework 2006-2013 was adopted at the government session on 3 August 2006. 9. The government expects that successful implementation of the Strategic Development Fra­mework 2006-2013 might result in the increased GDP growth rate of about 5% in the period until 2010 and above 7% after 2010. In 2013, average income per capita is expected to reach 75% of the EU average(measured by GDP per capita according to PPP). 21