August 22, 2021 - In the 3rd round of the European Volleyball Championship in Zadar (2021 EuroVolley), Croatia beats Slovakia 3-0 (25-21, 25-14, 25-13), reaching its third victory in Group C. 

The Croatia women's volleyball team recorded its third victory without losing a set in Group C at the European Championship, which is hosted by Zadar.

After victories against Switzerland and Belarus, Daniele Santarelli's team defeated Slovakia 3-0 (25-21, 25-14, 25-13. Slovakia took the 10-6 lead, followed by an advantage of 19-12. Croatia finally woke up, Klara Perić took the serve and Croatia achieved a 6-0 series which kept them alive in the first set. After one point went to Slovakia, Croatia achieved a new series and won the first set 25-21. 

Croatia continued its momentum at the beginning of the second set. On Božena Butigan's serve, they scored six consecutive points for 8-1 and increased their advantage to 24-11. A similar situation happened in the third set. Croatia took the lead early, made it 14-5, and easily brought the game to an end. 

Croatia thus leads the group with a maximum of nine points from three matches, while Slovakia is still without points after the second game.

Croatia will play the next match in Group C on August 24 at 5 pm against Hungary, and on August 25 at 9 pm against Italy. A victory on Tuesday would secure one of the first two places in the group, while Wednesday would be the match for first place in the group.  

A better position in the group ensures a nominally weaker opponent in the round of 16.

Zadar is the host of Group C at the European Women's Volleyball Championship, while Belgrade, Plovdiv, and Cluj-Napoca are the other host cities. Before the start of the tournament, Croatia was expected to finish 2nd in the group. 

Source: HRT

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August the 22nd, 2021 - Bad news for the well known Galic Winery, which now must return a massive 10 million kuna from the Wine Envelope which was allocated to it.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the Galic Winery, owned by entrepreneur Josip Galic from Kutjevo, must return 10 million kuna from the Wine Envelope allocated to it through the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund for the construction of a new winery building in Kutjevo which was worth seven million euros.

The Agency for Payments in Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, based on the recommendation of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), recently issued a decision to annul the decision on the Galic Winery project approval and made a decision on the return of paid aid in the amount of 10,047,442.29 kuna, Jutarnji list writes. This is the first such case, according to the same publication.

OLAF stated that during the construction of the winery, there was malversation and abuse in the selection of contractors, ie subcontractors. In this particular case, one of the subcontractors of construction work on the wine cellar was the company Presoflex owned by Ina Galic, the child of Josip Galic.

It should be noted that the Galic Winery hired one company as a contractor, and it then hired five subcontractors, including Galic's child's aforementioned company, which OLAF considers a conflict of interest, explaining that ''the legislative framework prohibits users of EU funds from projects for which they received money to hire companies with which they have personal or business connections,'' reports Jutarnji list.

The Galic Winery has stated that it is shocked by this decision, which they're trying to challenge because they consider it to be illegal. The Agency said that the decision was made “based on Article 33, paragraph 2 of the Ordinance on the implementation of the measure Investments in wineries and wine marketing from the National Wine Sector Assistance Programme 2014-2018, which stipulates that the Paying Agency will request a refund if it is determined that the beneficiary has acted contrary to the provisions of the Ordinance and the rules for the use of such funds for the Investment measure, ie in case of an established irregularity,''

They also stated that during the approval of the now disputed Galic Winery project, as well as during the control of its implementation, the Agency didn't know that a company owned by Galic's offspring was being engaged in the project, and that the beneficiary had previously been instructed in all of the obligations based on the project approval decision.

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August the 22nd, 2021 - The Croatian education system can sometimes be quite confusing, and new sanctions are set to be placed on Croatian parents who fail to enroll their child(ren) in preschool following recent amendments to the law governing that, which was previously much more relaxed.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, with the recently made amendments to the Law on Preschool Education, Croatian parents who choose not to enroll their child or children in preschool will have to explain the reasons for their decision to the competent social welfare institution.

One of the more important pieces of news related to this new amendment is the introduction of actual sanctions for those who fall into the above category. Although the 250-hour preschool programme has been mandatory for children so far, there were no actual consequences for Croatian parents who didn't enroll their child for whatever reason, so this so-called ''obligation'' was taken quite lightly and was more about theory than practice, Novi list writes.

The Rijeka Kindergarten says that they have no information about cases of the non-inclusion of children in preschool, but the director Davorka Gustin isn't ruling out the possibility that there were cases of Croatian parents simply choosing not to put their children into preschool.

''We also had parent inquiries in that regard. Of course, we have always pointed out the legal obligation and benefits that are provided for the child by including him in the preschool programme,'' said Gustin.

For more on children, the school system and education in the Republic of Croatia, make sure to check out our lifestyle section.

August the 22nd, 2021 - Will powerful European countries such as Germany, France and the United Kingdom be the ones to decide the fate of the rest of the Croatian tourist season, which has been going remarkably well so far? Maybe, but with people far more relaxed now than last year - maybe not.

With the memory of the dire 2020 Croatian tourist season still fresh in the memories of many, especially those who work within the sector, few could have imagined that the Croatian tourist season of 2021 would yield such impressive numbers of arrivals and overnight stays realised primarily by foreign tourists. Still leaning on the various coronavirus maps and traffic light systems of European countries, things could still take a turn yet.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, might we expect the mass exodus of tourists and serial accommodation reservation cancellations, like we did last year? Do guests rely on these measurements at all, and do they also surf the ECDC website as often as their hopeful Croatian hosts do?

The methodology itself has been the subject of serious debate for weeks now, but with the vaccination rollout across the continent going more or less well, European tourists seem much more relaxed than they were last year, when there was no such vaccine to speak of.

The public is beginning to realise that the mere addition of positive test results may not be the best criterion for introducing new anti-epidemic measures, especially now the vaccine is here and hospitalisations and deaths can be greatly reduced despite positive tests being returned. Dissonant tones can even be heard among country leaders.

When it comes to the tone being set by Croatian leaders, if we put President Zoran Milanovic and PM Andrej Plenkovic in that category, they managed to agree in principle that ''after the summer'', epidemiological measures can be abolished freely, according to a report from tportal.

The situation in family accommodation for tportal was described by the president of the Family Tourism Association at the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, Martina Nimac Kalcina.

"The potential transition of Croatia in the red zone would definitely affect the course of the Croatian tourist season, but it wouldn't be as drastic as last year. Most of our guests are vaccinated, and there are a number of countries that aren't guided solely by ECDC data, but have their own criteria, such as Norway, the Netherlands or Denmark. On their maps, Croatia is generally in a much better position,'' stated Nimac Kalcina.

"This year, we have an extremely large number of younger guests, and they're completely relaxed and simply want a more chilled atmosphere. The fact that Croatia had milder measures than most of Europe definitely influenced their decision and is definitely responsible for the success of the Croatian tourist season. But now the reversal follows: middle-aged and elderly guests keep their eye on the situation with the pandemic much more closely, they're much more cautious and are obviously less inclined to come. And they're the key for the post-season, meaning September and possibly October,'' explained Nimac Kalcina.

The president of the Split-Dalmatia County Tourist Board, Josko Stella, says that the reaction of tourists to a possible change in the colour of Croatia on the ECDC map, which is realistic to expect next Thursday, is actually the question mark above all other question marks.

"It's possible that they'll just completely ignore this information and just go on the holiday they booked, but there's also a chance that they'll urgently pick up their belongings and leave Croatia, while those who intended to come will give up on taking the trip. The truth seems to be somewhere in the middle, and I'm optimistic,'' said Stella.

"The answer isn't unequivocal - in the end, European countries like the Czech Republic, Poland and the United Kingdom have their own criteria. The most important thing is certainly the behaviour of large countries and the Croatian tourist season could be abruptly interrupted only if some of them decide to impose isolation upon return, even for vaccinated people, which in my opinion is unlikely,'' added the president of this Tourist Board.

He warned that the German Robert Koch Institute is preparing for a strategically important move, on the basis of which the largest European economy defines its epidemic measures, including the conditions for the return of its residents from their summer holidays.

"Over recent days, new criteria has been being proposed that will no longer take into account only the number of cases and the percentage of positive tests, but also parameters such as the number of critically unwell patients, the percentage of occupied respirators or the emergence of new strains of the virus. The incidence of coronavirus itself may have been relevant half a year ago, but that will hardly be the case for a long time to come,'' added Stella.

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August the 22nd, 2021 - Kastela, as well as the wider Split area, will be richer for another shopping centre from April next year thanks to the ''Stop shop'' retail chain, a brand of the Austrian company Immofinanz, the first such Dalmatian shopping centre, which already present in the northern part of Croatia in both Osijek and Valpovo.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, investors confirmed to Slobodna Dalmacija that the new Dalmatian shopping centre project is currently in the early phase of obtaining a building permit, and on August the 12th this year, they reported the beginning of the removal of dilapidated buildings at the location in Kastel Sucurac.

Immofinanz purchased the land covering a total area of ​​16,099 square metres (located on the site of the former Adriachem) last year from a company called Kemokompleks, backed by entrepreneur Enver Moralic.

The plot was neglected because in the meantime the remains of the former Jugovinil warehouses, which burned back in 2003 in a fire, still hadn't been removed. In the immediate vicinity there are three existing retail facilities - Lidl, Plodine and Super Konzum (the former Getro).

The procedure for obtaining a permit for the new Dalmatian shopping centre is, as stated, currently underway, as was confirmed to Slobodna Dalmacija from the Kastela City Administration. When looking at the system of the Ministry of Construction, it is evident that the permit was stamped back on July the 29th, but it isn't yet enforceable and final.

The ''Stop shop'' in Kastela is just one of the new retail parks that will be opened in the Republic of Croatia, says Josko Pitesa, the director of the Zagreb-based company Immofinanz services and management, whose founder is the aforementioned Austrian company, who announced that construction will begin after obtaining the needed permit.

The new Dalmatian shopping centre will cover about 7,500 square metres in total, and the opening is planned for April 2022.

What makes ''Stop shop'', which already has centres in Osijek and Valpovo, different from other shopping centres is the lack of common spaces in a large building from which one enters individual stores, which avoids the costs of joint maintenance. It is designed in such a way that each store is entered directly from the car park. Among the tenants of the centers in Osijek and Valpovo are DM, Deichmann, CCC, Spar, Intersport, Takko and KiK.

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August 21, 2021 - In the second round of the 2021 EuroVolley in Zadar, the Croatia women's volleyball team defeated Belarus 3:0 (25:19, 25:23, 25:15).

After beating Switzerland without losing a set at the opening of the tournament at Krešimir Ćosić Hall in Višnjik, Croatia was dominant in the second match as well.

At the beginning of the match, Croatia fell behind Belarus, but they finally equalized at 10:10 in the first set. However, once Croatia finally took the lead, Belarus came back ahead at 17:16. Fortunately, Belarus couldn't hang onto their lead much longer, as Croatia won the first set 25:19.

The end of the second set was much more uncertain, where Croatia was up by 4 points in the middle of the set. Belarus managed to come back and equalize, but with two consecutive points, Croatia celebrated 25:23. After that, Croatia dominated the third set, winning 25:15.

"We are happy to have won three points: our second game, our second victory. We concentrate day by day to try to do our best and grow from game to game every day. In the second set, we gave them a little more space to close the gap. We still have some oscillations, but we are working to have the best possible continuity. We are satisfied with today's 3 points," said captain Samanta Fabris, whose ace point at the end of the second set gave them the confidence to win. 

"I am satisfied with today's match. We played great games both today and Thursday, especially today when we were much more stable both in the block and in defense. We also made fewer mistakes. In the second set, we made mistakes that allowed Belarus to reach our advantage, but we took the opportunity to win, and in the third set, we took advantage of their drop in concentration and finally won. Slovakia is waiting for us tomorrow, and now we are going to the hotel for dinner and an analysis of the next opponent. There is no rest, we are going to work, and we hope that tomorrow's game will end just as well as today," said Božana Butigan.

"A very strange match. We had good moments, but also a lot of unforced mistakes. We played against Belarus at the beginning of the summer, but we certainly have the capacity and opportunity for an even better game. In the last set, we had three big mistakes that we cannot tolerate if we want to play against the strongest teams in Europe. I’m happy to win, but I’m not happy with the level of our game. I know my players, and I know the level of play we can show. Tomorrow we will have another crucial match against Slovakia. I hope that we will continue with the victories because it is of great importance to us," coach Daniele Santarelli pointed out.

Croatia plays their next game of Group C tomorrow against Slovakia at 5 pm, followed by Hungary on August 24 at 5 pm and Italy on August 25 at 9 pm.

Source: HRT

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ZAGREB, 21 Aug, 2021 - Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac said in Poreč on Saturday the sector was faced with a labour shortage, notably workers with the required qualifications, as well as with declining interest among young people for tourism jobs.

She was visiting scholarship students whose scholarships are co-financed by the ministry as part of a programme encouraging the education of hospitality and tourism personnel. As part of the programme, almost 2,000 contracts have been signed to date and over HRK 14 million paid.

Brnjac said she wanted to hear the expectations and the problems faced by the generations who, she added, were the future of Croatia's tourism.

She said she wanted to hear their ideas in order to improve the scholarship programme as well as the whole system of education in tourism.

Brnjac said the ministry would organise an event as part of the Conference on the Future of Europe to discuss this topic in more detail and that "young people are our the most important interlocutors."

She said that in order to respond to some of the challenges of the tourism labout market, additional funds had been earmarked as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan to strengthen human resources for a resilient and sustainable tourism.

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ZAGREB, 21 Aug, 2021 - The two-day "Ranger Croatia - 4 Rivers" humanitarian, ecological and educational campaign, aimed at pointing to Croatia's potable river waters as well as their pollution, began in Karlovac on Saturday, organised by the Croatian Federation of Nature Guardians.

The event was opened by Assistant Interior Minister Damir Trut, who said the campaign would help the children's hospital in Sisak and the animal shelter in Dumovec.

He said the fundamental task of the Civil Protection system was to protect people, material assets and the environment, and that this campaign's primary goal was to clean the environment.

Trut said members of the Civil Protection's intervention unit, the Interior Ministry's special unit, paramedics, firefighters and rangers of the Croatian Federation of Nature Guardians would demonstrate a rescue operation on the river Korana and joint action in the civil protection system.

He said the campaign was an example of how to raise public awareness, notably among children an youth, of the need to preserve the environment, waters and other natural resources.

He also underlined the importance and necessity of risk reduction and sustainable development.

The main goals of the campaign are building a smart network of nature guardians, rangers, protecting Croatia's nature and environment, improving flood protection, and cooperation between state and regional institutions in the prevention of illegal waste disposal and in nature protection.

The Ranger Croatia #ranger4river programme will be carried out throughout Croatia, starting with Karlovac County and then moving to Sisak-Moslavina County. After visiting every country, a team of experts will choose the greenest town and county.

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