Zagreb Brand L'erotic Wants to Create Gin-related City Tourist Attraction
November the 18th, 2021 - The Zagreb brand L'erotic has stated that it wants to create something new for the capital city's tourism scene, and gin will be the main attraction.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Sergej Novosel Vuckovic writes, for this Zagreb brand's birthday which is at the beginning of November, a brand new shop was ''born'' and soon they will have a gin bar under their belt, too.
The Zagreb brand L’erotic, behind which stands a young couple who happen to be entrepreneurs, crowned two years of cutting and drying fruit and vegetables and growing spices to decorate drinks. In a 130-square-metre space on Tresnjevka, where they combined manufacturing and trade, everything can be viewed, bought, tasted, and paired with homemade craft gins.
"We'll offer about twenty types of Croatian gin, people can come and visit the showroom and we'll dedicate ourselves to each person in order to help them find their taste, spice, fruit", they stated from this Zagreb brand, whose very wide range includes dehydrated fruits - citrus, dragon fruit, papaya, mango, pear, apple, strawberries, figs, and dried vegetables - beets, tomatoes, cucumbers.
This year, they chopped and dehydrated five entire tonnes with their own hands, preferring this approach instead of using machines, in order to preserve the aroma. The raw material is mostly Croatian, they grow it themselves or buy it from family farms, and they also prepare it for growing herbs. The Zagreb brand L’erotic works with 600 outlets across the country, in peak season this number rises to an impressive 900.
The lockdowns of pandemic-dominated 2020, they say, didn’t break them, and even though cafes were periodically banned from working or at best limited, they turned to consumers through a delivery service, as did many companies.
On top of everything else this Zagreb brand is busy doing, and mostly by hand and all by themselves, they also developed their own drink.
"Following the example of the Mojito and Sex on the beach cocktails, we mixed mint and lime, dried them and made Mojito tea, which is suitable for children as well," they point out. On December the 1st in Tomasiceva in the heart of Zagreb, they are taking a new step forward and opening a gin bar, the first of its kind, they say, in the entire immediate region.
"There will be domestic and foreign gins on offer, we'll have 35 tables on the terrace and 5 inside, we want it to be a tourist attraction for Zagreb," they concluded from L'erotic.
For more, check out Made in Croatia.
Change for Croatian Public Notaries to Make People's Lives Easier?
November the 18th, 2021 - The work and processes of Croatian public notaries is set to change, and it seems that the move is likely to make life that bit easier for people needing their services.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, the Croatian Chamber of Public Notaries has announced that all Croatian public notaries will be able to conduct official activities from the summer of next year without the physical presence of the parties in the notary offices, which will take a great weight off the shoulders of many people.
This means that all natural and legal persons, if they cannot come to the notary's office in person, whether for personal reasons simply because they're not around at that moment in time, can, with technical prerequisites prescribed by law and rules of procedure, communicate with the notary remotely and realise an electronic public document in the full sense of the word. The legal and bylaw basis for the alteration has been created by the Ministry of Justice and Administration in cooperation with the aforementioned Chamber.
The official action itself will be carried out with the highest measures of legal and computer security, and the working principle was adopted according to the model accepted for notaries in the Federal Republic of Germany, which is technically and legally very demanding, but also gives the best and most reliable results.
As is widely known, Croatian public notaries take actions that are of great importance to those requiring them, whether they concern real estate/property issues, companies, wills or bequests. With the new system of work, Croatian public notaries will be able to remotely determine the identity of the person needing a service and, equally importantly, determine their right and serious will regarding the intended legal transaction. In the same way, the notary will be able advise the parties regarding the consequences of what they want to do and explain to them what possibilities various laws provide as a possible solution for their legal situation. It will be possible to remotely book an appointment with a notary, as well as to conduct preparatory meetings so that the needed document that will be created based on this procedure is fully legal and in accordance with any particular request.
According to the president of the Chamber, Raus Klier, this project and its realisation are a continuation of the digitalisation of the public notary service.
"The Notary Chamber itself, as well as all of its members, invest a lot of time and resources in the development of a digital platform for remote work, but also in increasing the level of legal certainty. In addition to this project, we recently, in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and Administration of the Republic of Croatia, introduced the e-Enforcement system with the aim of modernising enforcement proceedings using e-communication and electronic forms,'' explained Raus Klier.
The work of Croatian public notaries in the remote sense will be realised through a special application (app) connected to the eNotar system in which all notaries have worked from the very beginning of 2018. People will be able to be with the notary in a so-called "secure virtual room", without the risk of losing their privacy and disclosing any sensitive data, with video communication for all parties involved. They will be presented with a document that the notary compiles and interprets and adapts to their specific needs.
The parties will identify themselves with triple security measures: videoconferencing, notary inspection of their photograph from official records and an e-signature of the highest security level provided by the eIDAS directive.
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35 Million Kuna Cash Injection for Novigrad Hotel Aminess Maestral
November the 18th, 2021 - The Novigrad hotel Aminess Maestral is set to get a welcome 35 million kuna cash injection, and special emphasis is being placed on one particular area.
As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the well known Aminess tourist company has started the reconstruction of the accommodation part of the Novigrad hotel Aminess Maestral in Novigrad, Istria. This is an investment worth a massive 35 million kuna, and this reconstruction will finish off and complete the entire new renovation of the four-star Novigrad hotel Aminess Maestral, the opening of which is expected during the spring of 2022, with hopes for yet another fantastic tourist season that summer.
With this large investment, Aminess is completely re-doing the three hundred rooms and bathrooms of the Novigrad hotel Aminess Maestral, and special attention will be paid to the modern design and decoration of the complex, for which architect Visen Slamar from the renowned Porec-based architectural studio Tissa was hired, the company reported.
In addition to raising the overall quality of service and customer experience of staying at this particular Istrian hotel in a very popular holiday destination for Croatia's residents and foreign visitors alike, the long-term goal of this renovation is to extend the season of the Aminess Maestral facilities to cover the whole year.
Given the hotel's rich offer of a range of family, wellness and sports facilities, the hotel's operational period could stretch quite easily long beyond the classic three hottest months of the summer season, which Croatia has unfortunately limited itself to despite an array of content which would attract all sorts of visitors from across the world outside of the main tourist season.
In addition to investing in hotel rooms, Aminess plans to invest additional funds in raising the quality of this hotel next year as well.
For more, make sure to check out our dedicated business section.
Split to Host First Melges 24 Class Croatian Sailing Championship
November 18, 2021 - Split will host the first Melges 24 class Croatian Sailing Championship this weekend, with 16 star-studded Olympian sailing crews.
From Friday to Sunday, the first Croatian Championship in the Melges 24 class will be held in Split, with 16 crews. JK Mornar organizes the regatta and is excited to announce that the best Croatian sailors of all generations will compete in front of Split. Thus, for the first time, spectators will have the opportunity to see the showdown of Croatian Olympic medalists Tonči Stipanović and Šime Fantela, and several other great sailors, including Melges 24 class Olympians Tomislav Bašić, Karlo Kuret, Ivan Kljaković Gašpić, Luka Radelić, and Toni Bulaja, reports Dalmacija Danas.
The regatta lasts for three days, and the first races are scheduled for Friday. If the weather conditions allow, the regatta course will be placed just below Sustipan so that the competition can be followed until the end. The regatta is led by Olympian Marko Mišura and the primary judge will be the experienced Alen Kustić.
The flourishing Melges 24 class in Croatia is one of the most beautiful stories of Croatian sailing. Namely, Croatia's best sailors have always looked for a way to compete on an equal footing, but in the past 30 years in Croatia, a class of identical ships has never been successfully formed that would make this possible. However, things started to change a year ago when at the initiative of sailor Filip Jurišić, and several of Croatia's top sailors decided to buy the world's most popular one-design Melges 24 sailboat. As a result, at the end of last year, the Croatian Melges fleet counted seven ships. As things kicked off, many of Croatia's prominent sailors, from Dubrovnik to Istria, decided to use these faster and smaller sailboats, so the Croatian fleet today has 15 ships, with a tendency to grow further.
One of the unique features of the Melges 24 class is that it brings together celebrated sailors and successful business people for whom sailing is a passion. Luka Šangulin, Miroslav Reljanović, and Matija Longin, among others, regularly take part in the Croatian Melges 24 regattas. All of them will also be sailing at the first Melges 24 Croatian Championship this weekend in Split.
There are 16 crews on the starting list, 15 of which are under the Croatian flag. The international touch to the regatta is brought by the Italian crew, led by Michele Paoletti, a sailor from Trieste who competed at the 2000 Olympic Games in the Soling class. Miroslav Reljanović's crew will include another international star - Norwegian Peer Moberg, who also sailed at the Sydney Olympics in the Laser class.
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Kvarner Leading Way to Making Croatian Maritime Industry Strong Again
November 18, 2021 - The Croatian maritime industry wants to return to its place as one of the strongest by establishing a global center for innovation and maritime skills in Kvarner.
The MarInn Association - Maritime Innovation Cluster was presented at the Ambasador Hotel in Opatija, marking a big step forward for the whole destination, but also Croatia, reports HRTurizam.
By establishing this cluster, Croatia wants to return to the map of the strongest maritime countries. One of the main goals is to establish a global center for innovation and smart skills in the maritime industry in Kvarner. Thus, MarInn will become the backbone of the development of the maritime sector in the Republic of Croatia, and the priority areas that the cluster will develop will be autonomous vehicles, clean technologies with an emphasis on hydrogen, transformation of waste into energy, and smart, green, and self-sustainable marinas.
Through a unique and innovative event, new technologies in the maritime sector, goals, and areas of activity of the Maritime Innovation Cluster were presented. In addition, a new online platform will serve to connect partners and achieve cooperation on projects in the maritime sector.
A green and digital vision of the future of the maritime industry
The founders of the Cluster are Lürssen Design Center Kvarner d.o.o., Maritime Center of Excellence d.o.o. and Gitone d.o.o. while the partners are Jadrolinija, ACI, University of Rijeka, ERNAFA, Novatech, BrightDock, FER, regional development agency PRIGODA, AVL, City of Rijeka, and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.
"By establishing this cluster, the Lürssen Group wants to bring together the entire eco-innovation system, from academia, the business sector, local government, and non-governmental organizations, and strengthen cooperation in the maritime industry and position itself, both in Croatia and in Europe, as a center of excellence for the development of new technologies and smart skills in the maritime sector. Furthermore, by joining the cluster partners, we enable work on already existing commercial projects, but also on future EU projects related primarily to innovation, research, and development in the maritime industry," said Peter Lürssen, co-owner of the Lürssen group behind the cluster.
MarInn is a platform for preparing research and development projects and the development of research infrastructure that will be available to all cluster members. By establishing and expanding the cluster, Croatia has the opportunity to show how it has the people and potential to achieve top results in the maritime industry, especially in the development of the vessels of the future, clean technology, autonomous platforms, and many other technologies.
"Our idea is to bring together all the Lurssen Group's commercial projects, but also new EU projects, to help us solve innovation challenges so that our technologies, these ships, are as green as possible, as clean as possible," said Ana Odak, President Maritime Innovation Cluster for the RI Channel.
The maritime innovation cluster will be located in the Innovation Arena, which will soon begin construction on the Rijeka campus.
Also, the construction of the most modern marina Porto Baroš will soon begin in Rijeka as one of the most significant investments in nautical tourism. This year, ACI d.d. and GITONE Kvarner d.o.o., part of the famous Lurssen Group, founded a joint company ACI-GITONE d.o.o. The combined company applied and won the tender for the concession for the construction and economical use of the nautical tourism port Porto Baroš in Rijeka, the future ACI marina Rijeka, which is also the largest and most important maritime project in the history of the Republic of Croatia.
The marina will have 260 berths and become a new Adriatic center for megayachts, and the estimated value of the project is 363.7 million kuna. It is planned to employ 132 workers.
The beginning of the sea part of the marina is planned for 2024, and the beginning of the land part of the marina with the main building is expected in 2025. With the new marina, Rijeka will be side by side with the most modern marinas across Europe.
For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.
State Attorney Says DORH, USKOK Not Under Government Influence
ZAGREB, 17 Nov 2021 - State Attorney Zlata Hrvoj-Šipek on Wednesday dismissed claims in the media and the public that her office (DORH) and the USKOK anti-corruption office were under the government's influence, adding that the withdrawal of the Agrokor indictment did not mean they had dropped the case.
Speaking at a press conference, Hrvoj-Šipek said that as state attorney she was firm and resolute in her intention to raise the level of responsibility at DORH.
"Some believe dirty laundry should be washed in one's own backyard behind closed doors. On the contrary, I think we should talk about that openly and that, as DORH, we can and want to show everyone that we stand ready to talk openly, to uncover as well as solve the problems in our own house."
Categorically refuting all insinuations against DORH, Hrvoj-Šipek said one should look at who was making all the imputations and unfounded criticisms - persons representing the accused or members of groups with political or other interests.
She went on to say that after yesterday's arrests of former prosecutor Mirela Alerić Puklin, her husband Goran Puklin, and a former member of the Agrokor conglomerate's management board, Piruška Canjuga, it became clear that the indictment in the case dubbed Big Agrokor must be withdrawn.
She said DORH would file it again after removing possibly contaminated evidence on which Alerić Puklin had worked.
"Those criticising and speculating know very well what would have happened had we not done that... A final sentence would have been grounds for a retrial, the whole case would have gone down the drain," said Hrvoj-Šipek.
"That would have been an embarrassment for DORH. This is neither an embarrassment nor a defeat for DORH."
She also dismissed claims that they withdrew the indictment because of an expert evaluation and out of fear of expert Kemal Ismail's testimony.
Speaking at the same press conference, USKOK director Vanja Marušić said the withdrawal of the Agrokor indictment was not a fiasco.
As for the arrests of former regional development and EU funds minister Gabrijela Žalac and former Central Finance and Contracting Agency director Tomislav Petric on orders from the European Public Prosecutor's Office, she said it was correct that USKOK opened the case dubbed Software based on media reports.
However, based on verified information and extensive inquiries, at that time USKOK did not have sufficient doubt to open an investigation, Marušić said, adding that there had been no pressures nor cover-ups.
€2.8 Billion in State Aid Allocated by Government in 2020
ZAGREB, 17 Nov 2021 - During 2020, €2.8 billion (HRK 21.1 billion) was paid out in grants, 40% more than in 2019, and the financial support to the enterprise sector during the pandemic amounted to €219 million (HRK 1.64 billion), according to a report on the state aid adopted by the government on Wednesday.
Finance Ministry State-Secretary, Zdravko Zrinušić, informed a cabinet meeting that "trends in state aid in 2020 were marked by the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic which also partially influenced the structure of grants awarded."
Zrinušić underscored that state aid continued to increase and in 2020 grants jumped by 40% on the year.
Croatia's state aid as a percentage of GDP amounted to 5.68%. Support per each employed person in 2020 amounted to HRK 13,666 (€1,822), which is an increase of HRK 3,978 or 41.1% year-on-year.
That amount was HRK 5,275 per capita which is HRK 1,600 or 43.5% more y-o-y.
The share of support in state expenditure in 2020 amounted to 20.72%, said Zrinušić.
The agriculture and fisheries sector was granted HRK 7.7 billion in state aid last year, which is an increase of 15% compared with 2019, while support to the industry and services sector amounted to HRK 13.4 billion or an increase of 60%.
Support to the economic sector during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 was granted for the first time ever and amounted to HRK 1.64 billion or 7.8% of all the state aid, while its share in GDP was 0.44%.
Instruments issued last year for support were in the form of subsidies or direct subsidies of interest and amounted to HRK 14.95 billion, followed by capital investments (HRK 2.2 billion), tax exemptions and breaks (HRK 1.66 billion), guarantees (HRK 1.4 billion), and favourable loans (HRK 888 million), the annual report notes.
Zrinušić underscores that no changes are expected in the structure of state aid in 2021, including the consequences caused by the pandemic and earthquakes that struck Croatia last year.
Education Minister for Sanctions against those Flouting COVID Rules
ZAGREB, 17 Nov 2021 - Education Minister Radovan Fuchs said on Wednesday the COVID certificate and testing mandates were being complied with in most cases without excessive problems and that sanctions should be imposed for those flouting them.
The mandates by the national COVID-19 crisis management team are being implemented as conceived and planned, he told the press after a cabinet meeting.
"The principals have organised things brilliantly and we are in contact with them," Fuchs said, adding that some school employees "refused testing and de facto entered schools and held classes. No one physically stopped them."
He said there was no need to hire security or police to remove people like that. He called their behaviour irresponsible, saying that no one is forcing anyone to get vaccinated and that the certificates and the testing are a measure to comprehensively curb the pandemic.
Fuchs hopes "those people will come to their senses and that they will not follow some... political projects and attempts by individuals who are trying to score cheap political points by irresponsibly playing with the health of our fellow citizens."
He said he would meet with Justice Minister Ivan Malenica and Health Minister Vili Beroš today in an attempt to find a way to legally regulate the flouting of COVID rules.
Government to Procure Drug for Treatment of COVID-19
ZAGREB, 17 Nov 2021 - The Croatian government on Wednesday authorised the head of Zagreb's "Dr Fran Mihaljević" hospital for infectious diseases, Alemka Markotić, to sign an agreement on the procurement of a combination medicine for the treatment of COVID-19, manufactured by F. Hoffmann - La Roche.
After the European Commission enabled the procurement of the combination medicine, consisting of casirivimab and imdevimab, in negotiations with the drug producer, each EU member state must sign a separate agreement with the Roche subsidiary in the country of delivery.
Under the government's decision, the medicine will be procured by 31 December.
Health Minister Vili Beroš said that based on the epidemiological situation, the necessary monthly quantity of the drug was around 200 doses in the next nine-month period.
The price of the drug is €2,065 per dose, not including VAT, so the nine-month supply will cost HRK 29.29 million (€3.9 million), including VAT.
The necessary funds have been secured by the Croatian Health Insurance Institute, said Beroš.
The government today also decided to donate 305,922 COVID-19 vaccine doses to the countries most in need, in line with an estimate by the COVAX mechanism, with Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman saying global cooperation and solidarity were key to fighting the pandemic.
New Split Advent Zvončac Program Announced with TBF New Year's Eve Concert
November 17, 2021 - The new holiday season brings new life to Split - and the debut Split Advent Zvončac program is here!
Split Advent 2021 will be unforgettable, with holiday houses arranged in several locations. Apart from Perivoj, the Cornaro ramparts, and Mertojak, holiday houses will also stand at Zvončac!
The program "Imaginarium Advent" was presented on Wednesday, organized by the company "STAR MAGIC" during December 2021 at Zvončac in Split.
“Another Advent is approaching. The situation is complex; we have changed the program several times and adapted it to new measures. This year there are four Advent locations, and Zvončac is just one of them. The public invitation for the big skating rink, which will be in Đardin this year as well, has ended. Despite this complicated and demanding situation, there will be a full music program. We are here today to announce the children's programs that have been in Đardin so far and are now being moved to Zvončac. There will be young animators, musicians, and dance groups. Minea will also perform in the two-day children's festival. All of them will contribute to this year's Advent being in our hearts, and the message of this year's Advent is 'Let's click on Advent' - with one click, you will get all the information about all events," said the director of the Split Tourist Board Alijana Vukšić.
She added that the gastronomy offer would include ten houses from the best Split caterers.
The Advent opening will be on December 1 at 4 pm, and Alen Islamović will perform with his band at 8 pm. A special event awaits us on December 7.
"It's Oliver's birthday, so we will play his songs at our concert, to remember him for his birthday. We are all emotionally attached to him; I hope everyone will enjoy it," said Petar Dragojevic.
Throughout December, Pravila Igre, Mia Dimšić, and Gustafi will also perform, while TBF will help Split enter the New Year. They will play from 10 pm.
"We are glad to perform at home because it is the sweetest. That area of the Zvončac has been arranged for these occasions - the older people danced for us there, which means something to me. I already have a feeling there will be a good atmosphere. You are all welcome, so come and be happy," said Mladen Badovinac of TBF.
All concerts will require Covid confirmations, and testing will be organized at the entrance. For the New Year, testing will be free, and tickets for the TBF concert are already on sale. The promotional tickets for TBF at the price of 60 kuna are almost sold out. Other concerts are free for all visitors.
Source: Dalmacija Danas, Dalmatinski Portal
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