Monday, 3 August 2020

Air Taxis Thriving in Corona Era, Zagreb's Jung Sky Records Most Successful Summer Yet

August 3, 2020 - Jung Sky, a Zagreb-based airline company operating in private, business and charter flights since 2009, is seeing a record summer thanks to the coronavirus pandemic.

Slobodna Dalmacija writes that while commercial airlines were absent on the Adriatic, this air gap has been filled by small private and business planes whose number of landings and takeoffs with tourists is expressed in hundreds per day at all airports on the Adriatic.

Usually, small private or business planes rented for transportation belong exclusively to the world of jet-setters, millionaires, wealthy athletes, and business people, which is peculiar that so many were coming to Croatia today. However, during the corona era, where travelers are looking to avoid close contact with other passengers, privacy is critical - and air taxis have become king.

Moreover, the coronavirus, which has caused trouble to almost everyone involved in anything related to travel, has brought new clients to business aviation. Demand is at very high levels, and more often than not, they are hitting record numbers. Currently, the sales department of air taxi companies receives up to 300 inquiries per plane per day!

Recently, the BBC World News reported on a record increase in the number of passengers who opted for this service for the first time this year, after the pandemic. The situation is no different in Croatia - and Zagreb-based "Jung Sky", which boasts two planes, recorded the best business results in June and July in the 10-year history of the company.

"After the number of flights dropped by more than 80 percent in April, in May the decline was halved, and the rush for the summer was slowly catching up," says Kresimir Vlasic, Jung Sky's director of operations.

June hit substantial numbers, and July is on the verge of the most successful month in the company’s history. Due to the excellent isolation conditions when traveling by private plane, in June and July, the pandemic also affected the profile of passengers.

"The dominance of business travelers is smaller, and this year a significantly larger number of tourists are flying with us than usual. Everyone is thinking about epidemiological issues and they see the right answer to their fears in our service. All indicators show that the current clientele has remained faithful to this service, but a significant percentage of passengers are using our services for the first time, and are determined to use us in the future. Traveling privately, with family and people you know well, is the epidemiologically simplest and most acceptable option, and the problem of lack of regular or insufficiently frequent airlines or congested roads is completely eliminated," Vlasic believes.

Drazen Gros, head of the operations center, said that there are different profiles of passengers using this type of service. They are most often top and middle management on business trips, families on family trips, individuals going on various business, sports or music occasions, musicians, athletes or actors, and experts of various profiles that companies send to perform specialist jobs.

There are many reasons to rent business aircraft, from organizing travel according to your needs and schedule, to saving on travel time and avoiding changing planes. There is, of course, the possibility of traveling to more than one destination, greater security and privacy during the trip, the possibility of direct arrival to smaller places that are weakly or not at all connected by regular lines and savings on travel costs in cases where more people travel. Tourist reasons are most dominant during the summer when the number of inquiries for Mediterranean destinations, including Croatia - grows," said Gros.

When asked if this is exclusively a deep-pocket clientele, i.e., the rich and famous, he added:

"No, it's prejudice. Extremely wealthy people have their own planes that cannot be put in the same category as our planes in terms of value. Just as road taxi transport has its advantages over public transport and is used by both private and business users, so air taxi transport has its advantages over regular transport. Sometimes, by using regular lines for a three-day trip, two days would be spent only on transportation, and by using a business plane, passengers travel to a meeting on the same day and return home," explains Gros.

Since such planes travel to Croatia almost exclusively by foreigners, which Croatian passengers are using these services? The interlocutors revealed that it is mainly the business community and senior management that use the services of small business aircraft due to the need for business meetings. The range of these aircraft is about 2500 kilometers, and it is possible to reach most destinations in Europe and North Africa without stopping.

So, how much does it all cost?

"The price of the service is calculated according to the total number of flight hours in the rotation ordered by the client, which includes the flight from the base in Zagreb to the destination where we pick up passengers, then the flight to their desired destination, return flight if requested by the passenger and our return to base. Prices vary by season, and some of the variables can be airport costs, use of the VIP lounge and the like. Our prices are between 1,800 and 2,200 euro per hour of flight, regardless of how many passengers are on the plane, and the planes have a capacity of six seats. The total cost of the flight is related to the total duration of the flight, and additional costs that vary from airport to airport, regardless of whether it is a return or one-way flight," said Jung Sky, which is one of about 500 such operators in Europe.

Business aviation makes up only 8 percent of the total air traffic in Europe, where there are operators that fly with only one aircraft, but mostly it is about two, five, or even a few dozen aircraft in the fleet. And they all provide passengers with a pleasant flight, whether it is a light "piston" aircraft or a large jet aircraft weighing more than 400 tons. In most cases, air taxi companies in Europe work with aircraft with a capacity of up to ten seats.

Unfamiliar with altitude and aviation topics, one might first wonder if turbulence in small business planes is greater and more frequent than in large planes that seem safer because they are, well, large. But air taxi companies argue the opposite. Namely, compared to regular commercial aviation aircraft flying at altitudes of 10-11 km, business aircraft fly at altitudes of 13,000 to 13,500 meters, so they are pleasant flights because turbulence at such altitudes is a very rare occurrence, and speed flight is up to 800 km / h.

Thus, the coronavirus pandemic, which brought so much trouble to the entire tourism and service sector and especially to the travel industry, has led to an increase in demand for business aircraft.

"This is partly because a large number of scheduled airlines have been canceled, while another key reason is the fear of traveling in large groups. The only things that have a strong impact on our traffic are the necessity of going to quarantine after arriving in a country and restrictions at airports. If April is not repeated this year, the future of business aviation is definitely bright, especially due to epidemiological issues. Traveling on a business plane not only solves the issue of staying in a cabin with strangers, but the service from start to finish allows a high degree of (self) isolation and flexibility. No waiting for a flight at airports, no standing in lines for check-in or control. It passes through a special general aviation terminal, you board the flight literally five minutes before takeoff, and the whole experience can be passed without any physical contact with other people," Jung Sky concluded.

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Monday, 3 August 2020

Croatian First League Playoffs: Istra 1961 Tops Orijent in First Match at Kantrida

August 3, 2020 - In the first match of the playoffs for the Croatian First League, Istra 1961, as a guest at Kantrida stadium, defeated Orijent 3-0 (1-0) and took a big step towards remaining in the company of Croatia's football best.

The first two goals in the match were scored by Grzan, the first in the 8th minute from a penalty kick, the second in the 64th minute, and Maganjic secured the final result in the third minute of the referee's added time.

Istra gained the advantage very early after Smolcic clumsily and unnecessarily knocked down Guzina in the penalty area. Grzan made sure the ball went nowhere but the net for the 1-0 lead.

Already in the 22nd minute, Orijent began losing hope as Ivancevic was sent off with a red card due to a dangerous play. Orijent was forced to play with a man down for the rest of the match.

The second goal of the match was scored by Grzan in the 64th minute, when in the race for a deep ball, Grzan was quicker than the Orijent goalkeeper Berkovic, found his way around him and hit the empty net diagonally.

At the very end of the match, the questionable referee Jovic showed two more red cards. First, after a rough foul, he only showed Istra 1961 player Ivancic a yellow card. After Orijent player Gerc pointed out that it was a red card foul, Jovic first showed Gerc a yellow card for objecting, and as it was his second yellow card, he was excluded from the game. Jovic then consulted VAR, and after watching a recording of Ivancic's offense, he excluded him as well.

At the very end of the match, Maganjic locked in Istra's final and convincing 3-0 lead.

The return match will be played in Pula on Wednesday.

Source: HRT

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

Monday, 3 August 2020

Project More Valuable than Peljesac Bridge: Turks Building New Railway

When you think of projects in Croatia which carry enormous value, you more than likely think no further than the mammoth task of constructing the long awaited Peljesac bridge down in Dalmatia, which will work to connect the extreme south of Dalmatia to the rest of the country without having to cross the border into and then back out of Neum, Bosnia and Herzegovina. But while the bridge is a strategic project for both the state and for the EU, that isn't all that's going on...

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 2nd of August, 2020, there is one infrastructure project going on on Croatian land which is even more valuable than the huge sum Peljesac bridge implies.

The Turks will soon ''set up camp'' near the continental Croatian town of Krizevci, following a decision made at the City Council level to lease some construction land in the Gornji Čret economic zone to Cengiz Insaat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S.

Back in May this year, the aforementioned company began constructing (and rebuilding) a railway from Križevci to Koprivnica and then on towards the Croatian border with Hungary (individually, it represents the largest infrastructure project in all of Croatia, worth 2.41 billion kuna without VAT, with 85% of that figure funded by the EU), and for such a capital multi-year project, space to accommodate contractors is needed.

In the ''game'' for the location of the workers' camp, Lepavina, Vojakovački Kloštar and the Križevci zone were all mentioned, the latter of which proved to be the final and best choice. The Turks applied to the city administration's tender for the lease, after sending a letter of intent. It is a plot covering about sixteen hectares in the eastern part of the zone, which has been leased for five years. As the investor, Cengiz undertakes the responsibility "of preparing the project documentation, obtaining the [necessary] permits and building all of the transport and utility infrastructure for the construction of a base for the accommodation of the workers on the construction of the railway," according to the notice from the city administration.

The camp would house about 400 workers in more than 100 prefabricated houses. However, Cengiz will not pay the rent with money (in the sense of a monthly starting price of 0.25 kn / m2 + VAT), but after the expiration of the contract, the road, gas, water and other facilities will be handed over to the owner of the land - the City.

This was the trigger for the reactions among the local opposition, which resents the fact that instead of building production halls, the zones are rented out for these camps and that the rental price isn't clearly defined. Mayor Mario Rajn retorts that the City of Križevci will save around 4.5 million kuna, which would otherwise be the cost of the very project.

"The complete works will be done by the investor. If the City had gone to build so much infrastructure and leased out the land, we'd have had a deficit of about 1.8 million kuna because we'd have earned only 2.7 million,'' points out Rajn.

Otherwise, Cengiz, the Turkish company responsible for the undertaking of this not quite larger than life but certainly ''larger than Peljesac bridge'' project, has annual revenues of over a billion US dollars. It has built, among other things, a new large airport in Istanbul, and it is working on the second pipe of the tunnel between Slovenia and Austria.

For more, follow our business section.

Monday, 3 August 2020

VIDEO: World War II Bomber Discovered Near Zirje Among Most Well Preserved

As Morski writes on the 2nd of August, 2020, the crashed German bomber Junker Ju 87 ‘Stuka’ from the Second World War was found in very good condition on the seabed on the west side of the island of Zirje six years ago.

The military aircraft was hit on April the 12th, 1941 in an artillery skirmish, in an attack by the Axis Powers on the warships of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia near Jadrtovac, from an artillery battery above Zaboric. The wreck is located at a depth of 26-28 metres, and the only thing missing is the engine that undoubtedly broke off when the plane met its fate and hit the sea's surface. The rest of the plane is completely intact and in excellent good condition, the body of the plane is even leaning on its wheels, as if it had landed smoothly on the seabed, and the engine is located nearby.

''As for the research, I think that everything has been more or less done. The serial number of the plane was found and all of the other data according to it was obtained. The plane was in Italian service when it crashed. It took off from an Italian air base and one of the two planes which were struck down managed to return, and the other fell into the sea near Zirje,'' said Igor Lemac, from the team of divers who have been diving together for years and who dived to this location over recent days. Daniel Frka is the author of the fantastic photographs you can view by clicking the link above.

Along with the "Flying Fortress" B-17 found near the island of Vis, known for its military past, this is only the second aircraft that was found practically intact in the Croatian Adriatic. The value of this discovery is enormous, out of a total of 5,709 manufactured aircraft of this type, only two have been preserved in museums in Europe, more precisely in London and across the Atlantic in the United States - in Chicago, while two Ju 87 wrecks were removed and exhibited from Norwegian and Greek waters in far worse condition than the one found under the sea near Zirje.

According to the available historical data, the plane is most likely an Ju 87R-2 aircraft which belonged to the Italian Air Force of the time, which was damaged by cannon fire by the air defense of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in the April War of 1941, and as such had to be forced to land. In professional literature on the topic, information was found about the attack of three Italian Ju 87R aircraft from the 239th Squadriglia, 97 Gruppo Bombardamento a tuffo on April the 12th, 1941.

Britain's Royal Navy were also stationed in the bays around Jadrtovac. On that occasion, two Ju 87s were hit. One of them crashed, resulting in the deaths of both the pilot and the radio operator. Another Ju 87 was forced to land on the sea surface due to damage, only to remain hidden from prying eyes at the bottom of the Croatian Adriatic close to Zirje to this day.

For more, follow our lifestyle page.

Monday, 3 August 2020

Despite Nautical Tourism's Popularity, Korcula Marking Drop in Traffic

As Morski writes on the 2nd of August, 2020, Korcula hadn't even bothered to hope for their overnight stay count for the coronavirus dominated 2020 tourist season to reach 70 percent of the amount of overnight stays recorded this time last year, but it has. In Korcula town, the very structure of the guests arriving has altered.

Most Croatian guests, who are being heavily relied on this year as tourism continues to be affected (albeit somewhat less heavily) by the global pandemic, tend to arrive on Korcula and into Korcula town in their cars. This is closely followed by boaters and the enfeebled nautical tourism sector. Although the results are getting better, the people who live and work on the island are hoping for a return of regular air travel, as Vijesti.hr/Andrea Zarak reports.

There are no crowds to be seen on the gorgeous Dalmatian island of Korcula this summer. Hotels that opened on Korcula back in late June are still only 40 percent full.

''This year, Croatian guests predominate. These are guests who come in their personal vehicles. We also have Germans, Austrians, Slovenes, and French tourists,'' said Maja Lena Lopatny, public relations manager of hotels on Korcula.

Due to the smaller number of airlines operating, travel agencies are recording a drastic drop in traffic.

''Transfers have all been cancelled, air arrivals are minimal and that's one of the main reasons why there are no excursions taking place that we normally do,'' said Vlado Iliskovic, the owner of a travel agency on Korcula.

The most sought after type of accommodation on the island is currently private accommodation, and in the very heart of Korcula town centre, you can spend the night for up to fifty euros, a dramatic drop when compared to this time last year, long before the coronavirus pandemic swept the globe and dragged the tourism industry to its knees.

''We have our lowered prices, the prices have been lowered by some 25 to 30 percent,'' said Katija Depolo, the owner of an apartment. The very structure of the guests arriving on the island has changed. They typically stay for a week or more, and accommodation outside of Korcula town is increasingly desirable.

''These are mostly guests looking for more distant places which are close to the sea, they're mostly families,'' said Hana Turudic, the director of the Tourist Board of Korcula town.

''Korcula is very beautiful and charming. Especially the old town. Last night we walked and had dinner at the tavern. It's really, really nice,'' said Manuel from Spain.

Croatian singers who can't work because of the coronavirus also recognise Korcula's sheer beauty and claim that that's why they're spending their time on the Dalmatian coast.

''I gladly come back here because this place provides me with maximum protection. This place is magical,'' said popular Croatian musician Nina Badric.

Well known for its glorious beaches, interesting history, beautiful architecture, proximity to places of interest on the Dalmatian mainland and its fascinating gastronomic scene, Korcula usually has no issue when it comes to attracting guests from all over the world and has since long managed to rest on its laurels - until now.

Nautical tourism, along with guests who have arrived either from the rest of Croatia or other countries in Europe by car are by far the most represented on Korcula at this moment in time. There are currently about three thousand and three hundred tourists staying there.

For more, follow our travel section.

 

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Monday, 3 August 2020

Delnice Becoming More Interesting, Attracting American Investors

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 2nd of August, 2020, while it is always good - and especially in this strange age dominated by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic - to be careful in planning and predicting the future, it is hard to disagree with the claim that the future of Delnice looks very interesting, promising and we might even dare to say impressive at the moment, much more than it has for many years.

This way of thinking has been encouraged by the recently published news about the serious interest of foreign investors, particularly American ones, thanks to which a hotel that will be part of the world-famous American hotel chain Marriott should appear in no less than Delnice next year, according to a report from Novi list.

But even if it doesn't end up showcasing the internationally respected name of Marriott, it will be a hotel, and that, in itself, is an enormous plus for the typically overlooked Delnice, especially considering the way in which serious investors were initially reached.

With the aforementioned hotel, the vision of the City of Delnice in the next year, year and a half, will be further changed for the better.

In September, a business and shopping centre should appear on the site of Delnice's former mill and bakery. The construction of its elements are finished and their installation will begin in September, which means that this year Delnice will have an even better trade offer than it does currently.

Furthermore, for mid-October, the opening of the newly renovated Delnice City Library has been announced, which is already finished and which will be not only aesthetically pleasing but an excellent functional unit. In addition to book lovers, there will be places for everyone who enjoys different forms of culture there.

Additionally, if the promises of the Government of the Republic of Croatia are to be believed at all, the large Retirement Home will certainly finally be completed next year, for which part of the funds were provided from the legacy of Janet Majnarich. All in all, Delnice - despite the coronavirus pandemic, the crisis that has ensued as a result of it and a number of other details which plague the area - is becoming an increasingly interesting and high-quality living environment.

For more, follow our lifestyle page.

Sunday, 2 August 2020

2020 Record: Over 30,000 Passengers Recorded at Split Airport this Weekend

August 2, 2020 -  Split Airport hit the record for weekend traffic this year, as the first two days of August brought over 30,000 passengers.

Croatian Aviation reports that Split Airport this weekend (August 1 and 2) had as many as 165 landings and takeoffs of commercial aircraft, which carried more than 30,000 passengers in both directions. This is record traffic this summer season for Split Airport. Although it is a relatively large number, for comparison, it was only 35% of passengers compared to the same weekend last year.

The head of reception and departure of passengers at Split Airport, Mate Melvan, said that in the first seven months of this year, the turnover was about 277 thousand passengers, while in August, the expected traffic is over 150 thousand passengers, which, given the situation, is a very good result.

The first two weekends in August have been one of the busiest in the summer season for years, so good traffic is expected next weekend as well. It should be noted that Split airport is currently directly connected to as many as 60 European destinations, and only this weekend planes from 47 destinations landed in Split.

British easyJet had the most lines to Split this weekend, 14 of them from the following cities: Basel, Naples, Paris, Berlin, London Gatwick, London Stansted, London Luton, Bristol, Glasgow, Amsterdam, Paris Orly, Geneva, Manchester and Belfast. Many lines were in traffic several times a day. Thus, easyJet had 29 landings and as many takeoffs from Split in just two days for a total of 58 flights!

This is followed by the national airline, Croatia Airlines, which flew from Split to Zagreb, Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Dusseldorf, Paris, Copenhagen, Rome, Vienna, Lyon, Berlin and London this weekend. A total of 12 destinations and 44 flights operated.

When looking at other airlines; Eurowings had 6 lines to Germany, Jet2 had 5 lines to Great Britain, SAS had 3 lines to Scandinavia, as well as LOT, Transavia, Lufthansa, Vueling, SAS, Luxair, KLM, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Norwegian, Edelweiss, Air France , Ryanair, Windrose, Smartwings, Condor, Air Explore, Air Serbia, Wizz Air, etc.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily

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Sunday, 2 August 2020

Tourism in the Corona Age: 10 Virtual Ways to Discover Rovinj

August 2, 2020 - Tourism was on hold when we started this series of articles, but most of us still have plenty of time. So let's look at the virtual resources available to explore Croatia virtually. We continue our new Virtual Croatia series with the tools to discover Rovinj, one of the most amazing towns in Istria.

A few weeks ago I wrote that being a tourism blogger in the corona era was about as useful as being a cocktail barman in Saudi Arabia. I feel less useless now, a few weeks later, and I am encouraged by the number of Croatian tourism businesses who are contacting us wanting to start thinking of promoting post-corona tourism. 

One of the challenges of writing about tourism at the moment is that there is nothing positive to write about. With people confined to their homes and tourism in Croatia currently not possible, many have decided to go into hibernation until it is all over. 

I think that this is a mistake, and I have greatly enjoyed the TCN series by Zoran Pejovic of Paradox Hospitality on thinking ahead to tourism in a post-corona world.  You can find Zoran's articles here.

Way back on March 14 - several lifetimes ago - I published an article called Tourism in the Corona Age: 10 Virtual Ways to Discover Zagreb. The way I saw things, now was an OUTSTANDING opportunity for tourism promotion. People have time, they yearn for their freedom and former lives, so give them the tools to thoroughly research and enjoy your destinations, and you will have then longing to be there. And when they do come, they will have a deeper understanding of the destination due to their research. 

South Africa and Portugal were the first to do their post-corona tourism promotion videos several weeks ago (Post-Corona Tourism Planning: Lessons from South Africa and Portugal), a trick which has been followed by other tourism countries, the latest being Croatia with the national tourist board campaign, #CroatiaLongDistanceLove, going live yesterday.

But while these campaigns create longing and market presence, they don't really educate. People now have time to really get into destinations. And dreams of escape to somewhere more exotic are high on the list of priorities of many. 

So TCN has decided to help with that education with a new series called Virtual Croatia, where we will be helping you discover many of Croatia's destinations with all the best virtual tools available on your self-isolating sofa at home. 

We started with Tourism in the Corona Age: 10 Virtual Tools to Discover Hvar.

After this, we put our a press release (which you can read here in English and Croatian) offering a free article to any local tourist board in Croatia who would like the free promotion in our Virtual Croatia series

The Sinj Tourist Board was the first to respond, and now you can see just how rich the tourism offer is in this proud Alka town - your virtual tools to Discover Sinj. This was followed by Discover OpatijaDiscover Brela, Discover RogoznicaDiscover Stari GradDiscover OmišDiscover LumbardaDiscover Jezera, Discover Šolta, Discover Cavtat and Konavle, Discover KoprivnicaDiscover PašmanDiscover Gradac, Discover Virovitica, and Discover Bibinje.

Paola from the Tourist Board Rovinj-Rovigno helped us with the materials you need to discover Rovinj online. 

Let's begin! 

Discover Rovinj - the Gem of Istria

Rovinj tourist board official 2020 promo video

Rovinj - the most beautiful place; video by a guest 

Rovinj Travel Guide 

St. Andrija Island

Best restaurants in Rovinj

4K, drone-recorded video of the sunsets over the Red Island

 

Some of the Best Hotels in Croatia

Hotel Monte Mulini

Grand Park Hotel

Hotel Lone

 

Health and Active Tourism Mecca

Health tourism in Rovinj

An active holiday in Rovinj

Biking in and around Rovinj

Discover Rovinj Websites

Tourist Board Rovinj-Rovigno has an amazing website, with an incredible wealth of resources to help you get to know all there is to Rovinj. They have a photo and a video gallery, a 360° panorama tour of the town, and even some mobile apps to help you navigate and discover Rovinj. 

What's keeping you away? Rovinj is close, it's amazing, and it's safe!

To discover more of virtual Croatia, you can follow this series in our dedicated section, Virtual Croatia

If you are a local tourist board in Croatia and would like your destination featured in this series for free, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Subject Virtual Croatia (and destination name)

Sunday, 2 August 2020

Employers Say Their Biggest Wish Is Lower Taxes and Parafiscal Charges

ZAGREB, Aug 2, 2020 - Four-fifths of Croatian companies are bracing for an economic downturn this year, and 70% of them say that the biggest help to them would be a reduction of fiscal and parafiscal charges in the next year, shows a survey conducted by the Croatian Employers' Association (HUP), which has about 6,000 members.

Furthermore, 36% of those polled say that their priorities are better transparency, digitalisation and a smaller and more efficient state and public administration. They are also hoping for longer deferrals of tax payments during the corona crisis.

One in 12 employers expect a rise in revenues

The survey, conducted in June, shows that as many as 78% of employers expect a decline in their revenues in 2020 in comparison to 2019, and half of them expect a fall of above 20%. On the other hand, 14% of those polled expect the same level of revenues as in the previous year, while eight percent expect a rise in their revenues this year.

The HUP acting director-general, Damir Zoric, said that the findings of the survey show that the priority of employers is a further reduction of the tax burden.

Sunday, 2 August 2020

UNICEF Says Croatia Has Relatively High Breastfeeding Rates

ZAGREB, Aug 2, 2020 - On the occasion of the 30th World Breastfeeding Week, UNICEF said that Croatia remains among the countries with relatively high breastfeeding rates, with two in three babies under two months of age and 57% of children aged three to five months breastfed.

Breastfeeding has invaluable importance for every child's health, notably premature babies and those whose health is compromised, the head of UNICEF's Croatia office, Regina M. Castillo, said in a press release.

That's why it's especially important to promote in every situation breastfeeding as the best choice and to give mothers the necessary support and information on the long-term benefits that breastfeeding brings both babies and mothers, she added.

All maternity hospitals in Croatia are baby-friendly

The high breastfeeding rate is also a result of Croatia's commitment to the "Baby-Friendly Maternity Hospitals" initiative because all hospitals in the country are baby-friendly, according to the press release.

A new challenge, it says, lies in the sustainability of the initiative, the development of the "mother and baby-friendly maternity hospital" initiative, and the promotion of breastfeeding in intensive care units for premature babies.

The protection, promotion and support of breastfeeding is a Croatian public health priority and part of the national health development strategy. The Health Ministry has recognised the importance of establishing a human milk bank as a key investment in the well-being of babies and ensuring the highest standard of healthcare for premature and seriously sick babies who do not have access to mother's milk.

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