Central State Office Seeks Designers for 3000 Banovina Houses
May the 22nd, 2021 - The reconstruction of earthquake-stricken Central Croatia is ongoing, and now those in charge of the process are on the lookout for as many as 3000 designers for future Banovina houses.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/VL/Josip Bohutinski writes, the organised reconstruction of Banovina houses which were destroyed or otherwise deverely damaged during earthquakes in the area at the very end of last year is finally in full swing as hopes for normality swell.
The Central State Office for Housing has initiated the process of drafting projects and expert supervision over the repair of non-structural elements in the earthquake damaged homes, which number 3000, in the Sisak-Moslavina region, as well as those located in the nearby Karlovac and Zagreb counties.
A tender for these services should be announced over the coming days, and the estimated value of this procurement stands at a massive 15 million kuna without VAT, and includes the preparation of 3,000 repair projects for non-structural elements, the expert supervision of the repair work for those 3,000 Banovina houses, and the preparation of findings for structural renovation of 300 family houses with higher levels of damage.
This envisages the design and supervision of works on 100 houses in Gvozd, 100 houses in Karlovac, 600 houses in Sisak, 1,300 houses in Petrinja, 350 houses in Glina, 50 houses in Topusko, 50 houses in Pokupsko and Kravarski, 50 houses in Lasinja, Draganic and Karlovac, 100 houses in Vojnic, Krnjak, Josipdol, Ogulin and Slunj, 50 houses in Hrvatska Dubica and Jesenovac, 50 houses in Dvor, 50 houses in Hrvatska Kostajnica, 100 houses in Majur and Donji Kukuruzari and 50 houses in Sunja and Martinska Vesa. The deadline for the execution of the design contract is 30 days from the receipt of the list of the houses, while the deadline for the professional supervision is 30 days from the end of the contractor's own contract.
The deadline for the execution of public procurement contracts is January the 31st, 2022.
According to the prepared tender documentation, in case the contracting bidder fails to fulfill their obligation and doesn't perform the services according to the established stages of the dynamics of service provision or is late with the fulfillment of the contractual obligation within the agreed deadline, the client has the right to calculate a contractual penalty of 100 kuna per day for each day of exceeding the deadline. The total amount of the contractual penalty may not exceed the amount of ten percent of the agreed price without VAT.
The Central Office will soon announce a tender for the services of organisation, coordination, planning and management of the process of the organised earthquake reconstruction of damaged Banovina houses. These will be operational coordinators, the value of which is estimated at 3.6 million kuna.
The services which will be required by this tender include, among other things, the preparation, review, amendment and supplementation of new items of the standard cost estimate for the full repair of damaged non-structural elements, the preparation of a standard project and standard instructions on how to repair non-structural elements with all necessary attachments and studies included, the introduction and control of contractual obligations of those contractors carrying out repairs and contractors performing professional supervision in accordance with the programme of measures and more.
This tender also applies to 3,000 houses in the Sisak-Moslavina and Karlovac counties.
The Central Office states that they have already concluded contracts for the construction of 1,060 family houses. They explain that the renovation of non-structural elements refers to the renovation of Banovina houses marked with a green sticker, where non-structural elements can be chimneys, roof cornices and parapets, gable walls, non-load-bearing or partition walls, roof parts, tiles etc.
The Office says that the works on the renovation of non-constructive elements began on May the 3rd, when the works on the renovation of the family house of Tomislav Klaric in Petrinja started. So far, they say, 6486 requests have been received for the renovation of non-constructive elements.
Public procurement in June
At the beginning of June, public procurement procedures will be initiated for operational coordinators based on the submitted requests from the owners of damaged facilities, of which there are currently around 8000. The deadline for the submission of those applications is open and will go on until the 31st of December, 2021.
Prior to the inspection of the buildings in the Sisak-Moslavina, Karlovac and Zagreb counties, out of a total of 37,000 inspected buildings, 8,400 were marked with a yellow mark, and 4,700 with a red mark - the Office said, noting that the assessment of the value of works on the reconstruction of non-constructive elements will be possible only after the preparation of said project documentation.
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Fighter Jet Decision to Alter Croatian Military Import-Export Balance
May the 22nd, 2021 - The Croatian military and its export-import balance is set to alter quite significantly following the country finally having made a decision on the purchase of fighter jets, ending a saga which seemed to be endless.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Brnic writes, Croatian military export-import balances are going to undergo changes over the coming years, because after a recent session of the Defense Council, it has now become clear that the Croatian Government will finally make the official final decision on the procurement of a combat squadron next week.
This decision will primarily change the current relationship in which Croatia exports more weapons and other military goods and services than it imports.
Last year, according to a report submitted to the Government by Economy Minister Tomislav Coric yesterday, Croatian military exports in 2020 were worth a total of 835 million kuna, and imports amounted to just under 129 million kuna.
The report doesn't provide a detailed overview of those exporters, nor does it go into deal about the types of goods and services it deals in, but most of the exports relate to HS Produkt, the Karlovac-based arms manufacturer, which normally accounts for the majority of exports, followed by Sestan-Busch, which produces helmets, and Dok-ing, which sells its self-propelled machines for demining, and Viktor Lenac from Rijeka, which was engaged in the overhaul of vessels belonging to the US 6th Fleet.
Last year was significantly better than pre-pandemic 2019, which isn't something many can boast of, and which was otherwise one of the worst for the military industry, in which exports stood at 493 million kuna. The record year for Croatian military exports was 2016 with almost 1.7 billion kuna in exports, twice as much as was recorded last year.
If the government concludes a contract to procure the French Rafale, finally putting an end to the very tiresome story surrounding fighter jet procurement, the first of those planes would start arriving in Croatia during 2024, when, depending on the agreed terms, imports of the military sector are likely to jump by 100 million euros per year.
However, if the military connection between Croatia and France, which is the most militarily powerful member of the EU following the departure of Great Britain, follows, there are justified expectations that additional space will need to be found for the Croatian military industry.
Since Croatian producers, as well as institutes and faculties, are interested in the establishment of the European Defense Fund, which will initially boast of figures of between 5 and 7 billion euros in the coming years, it is more than clear why more and more Croatian producers want to dip their toes into the lucrative niche of military production.
For more, follow our dedicated politics section.
Croatian ACT Group Creates Programme to Aid Young Entrepreneurs
May the 22nd, 2021 - The Croatian ACT Group has created and developed a platform called Nevjerojatni (Incredibles) to try to give young entrepreneurs a spring in their step and aid them along their way in business.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Lucija Spiljak writes, Ana Brigovic, the business development manager of the Croatian ACT Group, stated that entrepreneurship often costs people emotionally, but it is also extremely rewarding, giving us something to be proud of in life.
The Croatian ACT Group is aiming to further strengthen entrepreneurship this year by presenting the Nevjerojatni project, a platform for a support programme intended for Croatian business founders or directors under the age of 36 who are managing small or medium companies that have been on the market for a minimum of one year.
Until May the 31st, while the Nevjerojatni tender remains open, they will select five ''Incredibles'' to whom they will award vouchers in the amount of 5,000 euros for business development.
"For us, the key factor is economic activity, not the legal form, which means that self-employed persons, family farms, associations or any other entity that is regularly engaged in an economic activity can also apply for the tender. It's also a condition that they send us a video message because that acts as their application form,'' explained Brigovic.
The selected entrepreneurs will then be provided with advice and assistance in the development of their respective companies with experienced experts, especially since the Croatian ACT Group has a pool of about 50 excellent local and international mentors from various areas of business available to Croatian entrepreneurs.
As part of the programme, they will also organise training sessions on marketing, sales, strategy and operations, depending on the real needs of the users of the programme.
"Everyone involved will get earn some excellent visibility for their company and brand through a media campaign, we'll enable them to connect and network with other entrepreneurs, and all that along with financial support," noted Brigovic.
The Croatian ACT Group has been proverbially brewing this idea for some time now, and they started with true realisation back at the end of 2020 in order to provide visibility to good Croatian entrepreneurial stories and increase the level of respect for young entrepreneurs.
Croatian entrepreneurs, they say, are considered ingenious and - incredible. "We at the ACT Group have been working on providing direct support to entrepreneurs for more than five years and we wanted others to hear these inspiring stories we hear every day, about people from across Croatia who, with their perseverance, optimism and hard work create something good - from employment to something else good for their community, as well as innovation and other drivers of economic development,'' stated Brigovic.
Young entrepreneurs who have already found success are involved in the promotion of the Nevjerojatni project.
Raiffeisenbank Hrvatska also joined the project as a partner, recognising the importance of this initiative and the influence it can have on the development of society and the economy. “Our RBA partners believe that it's their duty as a company to use their human and material resources for the social well-being, progress and improvement of the quality of life in the local community. And that is exactly what they're doing by investing in such a programme to empower young entrepreneurs.
RBA will provide advisory support in financial management and investment, and they've prepared a free entrepreneurial package of their services for a period of one year for those entrepreneurs who have an account with them,'' Brigovic added.
In order to further encourage promising entrepreneurs to apply for the programme, in collaboration with young successful entrepreneurs from Croatia - Marin Mrsa from Peekator, Dragan Lipovac from Hubbig, Ena Rajic from Media Scene, filmmaker Jan Stih from Riza Biznis and Albert Gajsak from CircuitMess - they talked about different industries and markets to further help entrepreneurs navigate and develop across different markets and industries. Through the programme, they say, they would like to encourage local consumption, ie to order services or products from other small or medium enterprises from across the country.
"I think the Nevjerojatni campaign is another great initiative from the Croatian ACT Group to promote entrepreneurship in Croatia. I'm sure that 5,000 euros in the form of services will help entrepreneurs in their further development. On top of that, I think that the campaign was cleverly arranged, because the aforementioned award will be used even more with the help and mentoring of the Group,'' said Marin Mrsa.
The Croatian ACT Group continuously provides support to entrepreneurs through various annual programmes, too. The long-running Start Something of Your Own programme is currently being implemented, where Albert Gajsak was one of the winners.
The Erasmus programme for start-up entrepreneurs is also underway, through which they enable cooperation, knowledge exchange and business connections with other European countries.
They recently completed the implementation of a Rapid Response and Recovery Programme to help micro-entrepreneurs whose businesses are threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic, and as part of the programme, they developed and offered their repository of knowledge, advice and tools for improving business to all entrepreneurs for free and open use through www.podrska-poduzetnicima.hr.
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Split and Zagreb Citizens Support Government Initiative to Ban Working on Sundays
May 21, 2021 – Interesting research suggests most Zagreb and Split citizens support the initiative to ban working on Sundays.
We have already reported on the Croatian government's initiative to ban retail stores from working most Sundays. It is an unusual idea in a time when businesses are getting more and more flexible with working hours. The initiative has been endorsed by the Catholic Church since the beginning. It promotes the idea of people being allowed to enjoy Sundays with their families or attend mass service if they are religious. How this type of decision would affect the tourism destinations is another issue altogether.
Results of the Poll
The opinion poll was done in the run-up to the last week’s elections. As reported by N1, which organised the research poll, 65,3% of Zagreb voters and 74% of Split voters support the initiative to ban working on Sundays. MASMI agency conducted the poll on a sample of 1300 people. There were eight reasons to choose from for those in support of the ban. The right to have a day off during the week ranked as the most popular reason in both cities. In Split, 43,2% of people in support of the ban chose this option. In Zagreb, that percentage was 45,5.
Seeing how this poll was tied to the election poll, it is interesting to note the differences in political affiliations and choices made. Most right-leaning voters see Sunday as a day for the family. Left-leaning voters see it more as a day of relaxation and rest for the workers. Protection of worker rights is an important reason for SDP’s (Social Democratic Party) voters. 31,8% of them support the ban for this reason in Split. 18,5% of all those who voted positively to the poll question in Split and 15,8% in Zagreb feel this decision would help protect the rights of the workers. In other words, they don’t feel these rights are being protected or respected at the moment. This might be the most interesting and worrying statistic in the entire research.
It is also interesting to note how religious reasons didn’t rank high, scoring only 3,9% in Zagreb and 1,4% in Split. Religious voters believed the church service can be attended in times outside of the person’s working hours.
For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
Milanović: Situation in Zagreb Hospital Should Have Been Dealt with Sooner
ZAGREB, 21 May 2021 - President Zoran Milanović said on Friday that the situation in Zagreb's KBC Sisters of Charity Hospital was a disastrous example of neglect and mismanagement, noting that Prime Minister Andrej Plenković should have dealt with that problem right away.
Milanović, who was visiting the northern Adriatic peninsula of Istria to attend an exhibition staged on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the first national revival gathering of the Croats of Istria and Kvarner, commented on the Health Ministry having sent an inspection team to the hospital to investigate allegations of unlawful activities.
"I believe it is a disastrous example of neglect, mismanagement. It describes best what has been going on at that hospital for a year. After a conflict between the minister and a doctor working there, the case should have been solved by dismissing either him or her," he said.
Milanović's statement was a reference to Dijana Zadravec, the head of the hospital's radiology department, who has been replaced over poor interpersonal relations that have resulted in a large number of radiologists leaving the hospital and who claims that hospital funds are used for private interests and that corruption and crime are being covered up.
Zadravec has said that she is in conflict with "the heads of hospital departments who own private hospitals and work to the benefit of those hospitals while using the resources of the public health system."
The person in charge of deciding on the matter, the prime minister, let the situation escalate, said Milanović, noting that the PM could have dealt with it sooner.
"A year later, there is no one left... This is a serious matter and it must not happen because it undermines the little trust left in the health system," Milanović said.
Decision on fighter jets not made
Asked to comment on the purchase of fighter jets following media reports that Croatia has opted for used French aircraft, Milanović said that a decision had not been made.
"I don't know who published that because a decision has not been made, so (the reports) make no sense," he said.
Asked if he insisted on US planes, Milanović said that he had never insisted on US planes.
"I only said that the USA is our main partner, but that does not mean that we have to buy planes from them. I have been saying over the past year that I will support any choice the government makes. Both bids are good. One should take care of Croatia's interests," he said.
On COVID-19 passes
Commenting on COVID-19 passes, he said that if people got vaccinated more, there would be no need for those passes.
I will lay wreaths less and less
PM Plenković has said that there will be no joint laying of wreaths by state officials until the end of his term, to which Milanović today said that he would lay wreaths less and less, "except in cases of major national anniversaries."
He noted that apart from keeping florists working, wreaths were also a serious public sanitation problem because they attracted rodents.
"In the future, I will carry roses, a stone, a carnation wherever that is possible," he said, noting that the point was about commemorating people and events together.
"If he (Plenković) does not want it, so be it. We sat down at the table yesterday and did our job. According to his interpretation of the relations between the president and the prime minister, he was putting on an act. He was not, he was doing his job. I don't do all things I have to do with equal enthusiasm and pleasure either," said Milanović.
For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
Lawmakers Divided Over COVID Certificates
ZAGREB, 21 May 2021 - After the European Parliament, Council of the EU chair Portugal and the European Commission approved the COVID-19 certificate, intended to help summer tourism in the EU, the Croatian Sabor on Friday expressed dissenting opinions, from support to warnings that this was a discriminatory decision.
Social Democratic Party MP Arsen Bauk told reporters that SDP's MEPs had supported embarking on an agreement with the European Council with regard to COVID-passports and that the party supports them in the Croatian parliament too if they will facilitate travel and getting back to normal.
"Naturally, we are aware of the dangers of them being a means of discrimination and we will observe that solution with caution, as we did with the (COVID-19) measures, but in principle, we support the idea," he said, adding that the reference to discrimination was in the sense that the certificate serves to diminish someone's rights.
We're aware of that danger and that is why we will take care that that does not happen. We consider that that is primarily a document that facilitates life for citizens and only possibly something that discriminates, Bauk underscored.
If there are contentious things, such as protection of personal information, they are less than the benefits that the certificate can bring for a normal life for citizens, he added.
Marija Selak Raspudić (Bridge) underscored that until there is an equal approach for all EU countries to all three conditions that are set as essential to be issued with the certificates, and considering that Croatia has a low inoculation rate, that decision is discriminatory as it does not put all EU member states in an equal position.
It is also contentious, she added, how long that decision will apply and how it will apply to people who have been vaccinated with vaccines that have not been approved by the EU, which means that some EU citizens will not have the same rights as other EU citizens.
Stjepo Bartulica (Homeland Movement) said that it is necessary to warn that the COVID certificates could pose a threat to fundamental freedoms and rights.
For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
Renaissance Festival 2021 in Koprivnica Offers Croatian Traditional Crafts Workshops from August 19 to 22
May 21, 2021 - The Renaissance Festival 2021 to be held from August 19 to 22 in Koprivnica features the revival of various old crafts of Croatia as one of its biggest attractions this year to preserve these traditional practices.
As turistickeprice.hr reports, this year, the Tourist Board of Koprivnica leads in reviving and promoting old crafts of Croatia to tourists. As the generation who knows and carries these rare skills and practices gets older, most Croatian traditional crafts become less and less practiced and are now on the brink of completely disappearing. Due to this, the organizers of the festival decided to launch free training for those who are interested, especially to the young people, who they think will play a big role in preserving and saving these almost extinct practices. The available traditional workshops that will be offered are: wheelwrighting, coopering, basket making, gold washing, and thatching (straw-roofing). The workshops will consist mostly of hands-on practices and basic theoretical knowledge. Furthermore, the last masters of these crafts in Northern Croatia will be spearheading the transfer of these traditions to the new generation.
After the training, the Tourist Board of Koprivnica and Central Podravina will give the participants a chance to be involved in future events that preserve cultural heritage and history and they will also be able to offer their own arrangements in cooperation with travel agencies. The workshops have been announced to take place in June, in accordance with the relaxation of epidemiological measures, and will last from 3 to 5 days depending on the type of workshop. For those who are interested in learning the old crafts and participating in the workshops, you may contact the Tourist Board of Koprivnica.
Other fun things to expect at the Renaissance Festival 2021
The Renaissance Festival will be held on the remains of Koprivnica's city walls and is also featured as one of the Best Tourist Events in Croatia 2019/2020. To bring you back to the long-gone times of the Middle Ages, the festival offers medieval music and entertainers, knightly tournaments and horse fights, fencing, the largest fair of old crafts, and the largest and most unique wooden maze. It offers, as well, a unique gastronomic experience with their variety of medieval beers made of nettle, mead, capon, and pheasant or boar. The festival is also expected to have over 1,300 costumed participants from 15 European countries!
The use of plastic has been completely banned since several years ago, so expect your meals to be traditionally prepared - on the spot and in clay or wooden pots. The meals will showcase medieval recipes and it will also highlight the use of nettles (kopriva) - a plant that dominantly grows in this region and to which Koprivnica owes its name.
It will be a unique and authentic experience of the Middle Ages. Through interacting with historical figures such as brave knights, noble ladies, old crafts, beggars, lepers, court jesters, executioners and others - each visitor will be given a treat of a truly unique, bewitching, and fun return to history!
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Crobex Drops by 0.5% as Dalekovod Shares Plunge in Price
ZAGREB, 21 May 2021 - The Zagreb Stock Exchange Crobex index ended the last trading day of the week by going down by 0.5%, due to a drastic fall in the price of the Dalekovod transmission line producer's shares of 59%.
The Crobex index fell by 0.52% to 1,943 points while the Crobex10 remained stable at 1,200 points.
Nevertheless the main indices ended the week in the green, with the Crobex strengthening by 0.18%, increasing for the fifth week in a row, while the Crobex10 increased by 0.6% on the week.
Regular turnover amounted to HRK 5.8 million or about one million less than on Thursday.
Investors focused on the Dalekovod stock, which generated a turnover of HRK 1.25 million. The price of Dalekovod shares, however, plunged by 59.14% to close at HRK 2.37 per share.
Dalekovod has called a meeting of its shareholders' assembly for 30 June to decide about capital stock reduction and an increase in the capital stock.
The greatest turnover was generated with the preferred shares of the Atlantska Plovidba shipping company, amounting to HRK 1.36 million. Their price dropped by 1.33% to HRK 372.
A total of 42 stocks traded today, with 12 of them registering share price increases, 16 recording share price decreases and 14 remaining unchanged.
(€1 = HRK 7.508080)
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E-Matematika: New Online Instruction Developing Business That Helps Pupils
May 21, 2021 - With math seeing more and more appreciation, it's still, quite rightfully, a challenging discipline that not everyone can comprehend. Quality lessons, additional instructions, and motivated lecturers and teachers are the obvious recipe to both help those who struggle with math and those who are good at it to achieve their best possible potential.
However, the coronavirus pandemic is still present and is still causing difficulties in the Croatian education system, forcing pupils and professors to switch from online to live lectures or a mix of the two, putting additional pressure on sharing knowledge on any imaginable subject. With math being a discipline that requires lots of practice and explanations, it's perhaps the subject which has suffered the most.
Still, as Srednja.hr reports, a great potential solution to this issue appeared back in October 2020 when Robert Pavlik started E-Matematika, a website, for online math instructions.
''The site is focused on all students that need help with math, whether it's about fixing a bad grade or preparing for an exam“, writes Srednja.hr.
E-Matematika currently offers 45 minutes of lessons, offering solved mathematical tasks with the procedure detailed, as well as a video explanation.
These instructions are paid for simply through the ''order instructions''check-out process, and it's all quite automated. However, phone and videocalls for arranging instructions are an option for the safety of kids so that parents can see with whom they'll be communicating. Reliable platforms for communication such as Zoom, Google Meet, and MS Teams are also used, and two conditions need to be satisfied for the instructions to work: easy platform access for the student and an uninterrupted video connection. Each instruction ends with the service sending a questionnaire to the students to see how happy they are with the whole experience, as well as a receipt. The questionnaire builds the personal rating of the instructor.
There are four levels of instructions: lower elementary classes, higher elementary classes, high schools, and faculties, which offer more effective services as some instructors prefer to work with teens, and others are specialised working with younger kids. The site so far boasts 100 instructors, and in addition to maths, Croatian pupils can also find instructions from the subjects of physics and chemistry. Srednja.hr adds that students from field-related faculties recognised the work of E-Matematika and want to participate.
The site welcomes anyone interested to apply to become the next instructor, as long as they satisfy the following conditions: two years of instructing experience as a minimum, excellent communication skills, reliability, flexibility in organising instructions, along with patience and the ability to focus on a student.
It's also worth mentioning that the first concept of online instructions in Croatia (again, for math, but also for statistics) appeared in 2011, when a mathematics professor at the Faculty of Science (PMF), University of Zagreb, Toni Milun, started posting videos explaining the curriculum online and for free. And you guessed it; it was a huge hit.
Despite Milun offering additional mathematics lessons for free, E-Matematika having more than 500 registered users and 2000 orders, it seems it can justify the paid offer with its value and use.
However, it will be interesting to see will this trend continue when the pandemic is over and the face-to-face instructions return as normal. Currently, the Croatian media landscape is seeing more and more pupils and parents stepping out and saying that nothing can replace face-to-face classes.
Learn more about Croatian inventions & discoveries: from Tesla to Rimac on our TC page.
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Remains of Five Victims Who Went Missing in War Identified in Osijek
ZAGREB, 21 May 2021 - Five people, whose remains were unearthed in Croatia's Danube region after they had gone missing in the 1991-1995 Homeland War, were identified in an Osijek hospital's forensic department on Friday.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, accompanied by War Veterans' Affairs Minister Tomo Medved, attended the final identification and after that he told the press the government was committed to shedding light on the fate of all the war victims.
Plenković said that the issue of missing victims was raised on every occasion and at every formal and informal meeting with Serbia's representatives.
Minister Medved said that Serbia still made no contribution to efforts to find the victims who went missing in the war.
After today' identification, the number on the list of missing people has fallen to 1,864. Of them, 401 are presumed to be dead and the fate of the remaining 1,463 victims is still unknown.
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