September the 29th, 2021 - The Croatian Agrivi company has had its agriculture innovation recognised, praised, and chosen as the very best by no less than the United Nations (UN).

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Lucija Spiljak writes, with software such as that created by the Croatian Agrivi company, farmers can work to successfully reduce risks and increase their overall yields while simultaneously increasing their product quality and creating additional savings.

Back in July this year, the Croatian Agrivi agritech (agricultural technology) company was among the 27 impressive finalists of the Digital Excellence in Agriculture in Europe and Central Asia competition organised by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (UN) from which it returned home as the winner in the Agricultural Innovation Systems and Sustainable Agriculture - Related Systems farm management category.

"I'm proud that Agrivi has once again been recognised as an innovative technological solution that contributes to the long-term sustainability of agricultural production, not only in Croatia, but on global scale. This award is yet another confirmation of the efficiency and quality of Agrivi's software, which brings numerous benefits to farmers and consumers in the long run.

With software such as that created by Agrivi, farmers reduce risks and increase their yields while increasing their product quality and creating savings. On the other hand, the implementation of this software in production ensures the constant control of the production process, which enables traceability, so that consumers have a completely transparent insight into the production process of the food they're consuming. This is no longer our future, but the present,'' said the founder and director of the Croatian Agrivi company, Matija Zulj, adding that he hopes that in the coming period, an increasing number of producers will begin to digitise their production.

For more on Croatian inventions, companies and innovation, make sure to check out Made in Croatia.

September the 29th, 2021 - With the topics surrounding Croatian entry into the Eurozone being ever-present as the time draws nearer for the kuna to enter to history books, what about another currency that many have forgotten about - Croatian dinars. You can still purchase them, and here are the costs for these little pieces of history.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, while looking for a place where the Croatian kuna will be stored when the euro becomes the official currency in the Republic of Croatia - the RTL team wondered if there could be any more more Croatian dinars which were withdrawn in 1994, and if so, where might they be?

In their search, they finally came to quite the concrete answer - there are almost a million banknotes bearing the image of Croatian scientist Rudjer Boskovic that are kept in the country, more precisely at Croatian Nobles' Square (Trg hrvatskih velikana) and you can still purchase them if you're into coin collecting for quite a fair price.

You can buy all these Croatian dinars (banknotes) in a folder for just 312 kuna and fifty lipa. However, the total amount of Croatian dinars that have been in circulation for four years is incomparably higher, and they're more than likely still stuffed under various mattresses and in forgotten shoeboxes in homes across the country.

On the face of each Croatian dinar banknote was the figure of the famous Dubrovnik-born (then the Republic of Ragusa) scientist Rudjer Boskovic. On the back of the banknotes of up to 1,000 Croatian dinars was a picture of the Zagreb Cathedral, and on the others was a picture of Mestrovic's famous sculpture "History of the Croats/Povijest Hrvata".

Although they can no longer be exchanged or redeemed, these old Croatian dinars are kept, much like the current Croatian kuna will be, in the vault of the Croatian National Bank., and when the kuna, with the arrival of the euro, follows in the footsteps of the dinar into the history books, it will be taken care of in an even stricter way.

For more, check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

September 29, 2021 - Tickets are on sale for the Croatia World Cup qualifier against Slovakia at City Garden Stadium in Osijek on October 11.

The Croatia national football team will continue qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in October. Zlatko Dalić's team will play against Cyprus in Larnaca on October 8 and Slovakia three days later in Osijek, reports HNS.

Online ticket sales for both Cyprus and Slovakia started on September 28 at 3 pm, the Croatian Football Federation announced.

The ticket price for the match against Cyprus is 80 kuna, and tickets can only be purchased online. One person can buy a maximum of four tickets.

Online ticket sales include a personal collection at the stadium box office with the presentation of a passport and a purchase confirmation (voucher), which is downloaded from the user's website after a successful purchase. Replacing vouchers at the stadium will be determined later, and all customers will be notified by e-mail.

Only citizens of the Republic of Croatia have the right to purchase online, regardless of residence address, by filling in personal data (name and surname, OIB, passport or identity card number, date of birth, and customer address). In addition to their data, the buyer also enters data on other spectators for whom they buy tickets, while other spectators do not have to be Croatian citizens.

The deadline for purchasing tickets is October 1 until 12 noon, i.e., until the availability of tickets is used.

Buying tickets for Croatia fans for the match against Cyprus is possible only through the Croatian Football Federation website. Croatia fans will not purchase tickets at the stadium box office or access the stadium without a voucher.

Entry to the stadium will be allowed only to those fans who have a valid EU digital COVID certificate issued based on complete vaccination or recovery of the coronavirus. EU digital COVID certificates issued based on PCR or antigen tests will not be recognized. HNS notes that no different vaccination certificates or sickness certificates will be recognized, but only the EU digital COVID certificate with a valid QR code checked at the entrance.

Ticket sales are organized exclusively online for the qualifying match between Croatia and Slovakia at City Garden Stadium in Osijek (October 11 at 8.45 pm). Ticket prices in presale (as of October 10) are 150 kn (west), 100 kn (east), and 75 kn (south). On the day of the match on October 11, the prices will be 200, 120 and 90 kn.

Everyone coming to the stadium must have an EU digital COVID certificate. However, children under the age of 12 who have a ticket can enter the stadium without an EU digital COVID certificate if accompanied by a parent or guardian who has a certificate and a ticket.

Ticket sales include e-tickets that the customer must download and print. Only citizens of the Republic of Croatia have the right to purchase, regardless of residence address, by filling in the required personal information.

One person can buy up to four tickets. In addition to their data, the buyer can also enter data on other ticket holders, where they do not necessarily have to be a citizen of the Republic of Croatia.

TICKETS CAN BE PURCHASED HERE

To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.

September 29, 2021 - The 2021 Croatia postseason is going better than expected, with around 200,000 tourists in Croatia at the moment.

While the pre-season in Croatia hardly yielded results, the peak season exceeded all expectations, and the post-season finally came to life to surprise us all. 

Last year, tourists fled Croatia in mid-August after Croatia was marked in red due to the increase in the number of new cases, and although the same scenario was repeated this year, it did not have the same effect on tourism as 2020.

As Index.hr has learned, more rooms are in demand in hotels, and although we are about to enter October, there are currently around 200,000 tourists in Croatia.

According to eVisitor, 1.7 million arrivals and 11.3 million overnight stays were made in Croatia so far in September, which is an increase of 239 percent in arrivals and 146 percent in overnight stays compared to the same period last September. Compared to the same period in September 2019, this represents 85 percent of the results in arrivals and 95 percent of the results in overnight stays.

Veljko Ostojić, director of the Croatian Tourism Association (HUT), told Index that hoteliers and camps are very satisfied with the post-season.

"The post-season in hotels and camps was great. What happened with Croatia in the red did not affect our tourism, so there were no booking cancellations. Practically all hotels that worked in August continued to operate in September, and we are lucky with time. So we can all be delighted. And another conclusion of all is that in the postseason, it was confirmed that the higher the quality of the hotel and the more stars, the more sought after and filled it is, which is a message to everyone for the future," Ostojić said to Index.

He states that during the post-season in September, it could be noticed that groups began to return to Croatia, which had been absent for the last year and a half due to the pandemic.

"Organized tourism, be it smaller events, congresses, wine tours, retirement groups, all have adapted to the current situation. If guests or groups have covid-certificates, there are no restrictions on organizing specialized groups," Ostojić added.

Index also spoke with Tomislav Fain, president of the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies (UHPA). At the beginning of the conversation, he pointed out that the post-season is above all expectations.

"As for the post-season, it is above all expectations, as well as the whole season. Groups, pensioners, school groups, foreigners are returning to us. This has brought great optimism because there are more and more inquiries for next year. When the groups return, retirees, it is easier to breathe because we see that we will do well next pre-season as well. So that is an indicator for us to continue," says Fain.

He emphasized that these groups significantly influence the entire tourism sector, so everyone makes a profit, including bus carriers, travel agencies, guides, restaurants, and hotels.

"When an individual comes with a car, they can only stay in the apartment, but when you have a group, it connects all stakeholders in tourism. And that guest gives traffic to everyone. Everything is moving, especially in the part where they hire guides, buses, and go on excursions. So the whole sector gets an extra boost," Fain told Index.

The director of the Croatian Tourist Board, Kristijan Staničić, also commented on the results. 

"That the season in Croatia is still ongoing is shown by the data on the current number of tourists, so about 200 thousand tourists stay in our country, while last year at this time about 90 thousand of them stayed in the country. Moreover, excellent trends in September show the data by type of accommodation facilities," said Staničić.

He states that about 2.8 million overnight stays have been realized in camps so far in September, an increase of 25 percent compared to the same period in September 2019. In addition, 3.6 million overnight stays were realized in household facilities, which is an increase of 3 percent compared to 2019, while hotels with 2.5 million overnight stays are at a high 80 percent of the results from September 2019.

"We expect good trends to continue in the coming weeks, for the last quarter of this year we already have a fully prepared communication and advertising strategy, so we will soon start implementing a campaign with the working title 'Thank you' on all Croatia Full of Life social networks, which will aim to further promote and highlight Croatia through the positive experiences of tourists who have stayed in our country," commented the director of the Croatian Tourist Board Kristjan Staničić.

He added that they have an autumn campaign on the topic of culture, history, intangible heritage, and eno-gastronomy, i.e., it is an additional promotion of the platform "Croatia Hearts and Crafts", launched by the CNTB in cooperation with Google, while for the domestic market and foreign guests who will stay in Croatia during October, they are preparing the "Croatian Tourism Month" campaign with tourist products and services at reduced and attractive prices.

After an extremely successful peak season, which passed beyond all forecasts for the entire Adriatic and demand was comparable to pre-pandemic 2019, Bluesun Hotels and Resorts recorded excellent results in the postseason, and the largest hotels in the chain remain open almost entirely due to high demand in October.

"Due to the beginning of the school year, the structure of guests changes in September, both in Croatia and in all emitting markets. Also, there is a change in the motive for the arrival of guests. The sea and the sun are no longer their exclusive precondition. These are guests who require much more content, are more active, mobile, and more inclined to explore the destination, the hinterland, and the interior of Croatia. They are much more involved in sports, interested in sights, and more dedicated to themselves, so they also explore local gastronomy and use wellness facilities," said Stjepko Šošić, director of revenue management at Bluesun Hotels & Resorts.

He states that, accordingly, they adjusted the autumn offer with sports, gastronomy, and wellness facilities and packages offered by their hotels and destinations, and through several different marketing and sales activities primarily addressed couples and individuals. He adds that they are the most represented in this period of the season because they want to avoid the biggest crowds and heat and complete the experience in our destinations with numerous additional activities.

He states that, even though the whole of Croatia has been on the red list since the beginning of September, new reservations are still arriving every day, so in some terms, they had to stop selling for the end of September due to lack of capacity.

"Considering that the weather was very nice through September, a large part of the guests extended their stays by a few days compared to the period they initially booked," said Stjepko Šošić.

Currently, Bluesun's nine open hotels (six of them on the Makarska Riviera) and one camp, in addition to the growing number of individual guests, which is a trend that has continued from the peak season to this autumn, are seeing a trend in traditional sports and fitness groups.

"At the end of September and through October, we have numerous MICE (meetings, incentives, congresses, and events) events in our hotels with congress facilities. As a result, MICE is much stronger this fall than expected, and there is a strong demand from the corporate milieu. We are especially pleased with the recovery of this sales segment, which is extremely important to extend the season. These are working meetings and mostly respectable domestic companies from the field of medicine, IT sector, and pharmaceutical industry," said Marija Benjak, head of Bluesun Hotels & Resorts group and MICE sales.

As for the structure of guests by markets, Germany is traditionally the most represented in September, where a third of the total number of guests comes from. Also, already in mid-August, according to Bluesun, reducing the number of guests from the hitherto dominant car destinations is noticeable, and with establishing regular air traffic, the number of guests from the British and Scandinavian markets is growing.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

September 28, 2021 - The CRO Race 1st stage finished on Tuesday on a 237-kilometers-long route from Osijek to Varaždin. On Wednesday, cyclists will ride from Slunj to Otočac.

The first and longest stage of the sixth edition of the CRO Race has been completed. The 237-kilometer stage started from Osijek with the finish line in Varaždin, reports HRT.

German Phil Bauhaus, a member of the Bahrain Victorious team, justified his status as one of the favorites to win and was faster than Dutchman Olav Kooi (Jumbo-Vism) in second and Norwegian Kristoffer Halvorsen (Uno-X) in third.

In the second stage, which will take place on Wednesday from Slunj to Otočac, Bauhaus will take the red shirt of the leader in the overall standings. This is his ninth victory in 2021.

"I positioned myself well before the finish. My team did a great job because it was a windy stage. I expect that the stage winner will be decided by the sprint on Wednesday, although there will be many more climbs ahead of us," said Bauhaus.

The longest stage of this year's race started as expected. Very soon after the start, a group of five drivers was formed, which stood out from the peloton and created a significant advantage. Among them was Croatian cyclist Fran Miholjevic (Team Friuli), accompanied by Poles Pawel Franczak (Voster ATS Team) and Marceli Boguslawski (HRE Mazowsze Serce Polski), Italian Mattia Viel (Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec), and German Tim Oelke (Metalltechnik).

At the first passing goal to Slatina after 84 kilometers, the Frenchman was first ahead of Viel and Boguslawski.

But the four "World Tour" teams competing in the race did not allow the advantage to grow too much, and the maximum difference was 4:45 minutes.

Fifty kilometers before the finish line, Boguslawski stood out from the leading group, who had a minute advantage before the only ascent in the stage in Ludbreški Vinogradi. By the top of the climb, Boguslawski had a 15-second lead over second-placed Miholjevic and third-placed Franczak and became the first green jersey holder at this year's CRO Race.

On the descent towards Ludbreg, Miholjević overtook Boguslawski and was the first to cross the passing goal in Ludbreg. As expected, soon after the second passing goal, 28 kilometers before the finish in Varaždin, the peloton caught the last two cyclists who spent more than 200 kilometers at the head of the race.

"The team plan for this stage was to try to get into an escape. I was the first to try, and that escape immediately succeeded," said 19-year-old Miholjević, who has never mastered such a long section as he had on Tuesday.

After the original escape, two Euskaltel drivers, Xabier Azparren and Luis Angel Mate, stood out from the leading group. They managed to hold out in front of the peloton up to eight kilometers before the finish line.

The best-placed Croatian cyclist was Josip Rumac, who finished the stage in 14th place. The young Fran Miholjević drove an excellent first stage and was first in the bonus sprint and second in the mountain passing goal. He finished the stage in 54th place. 

On Wednesday, the second stage will run from Slunj to Otočac in the length of 187 kilometers.

CRO Race 1st stage results:

1. Phil BAUHAUS TBV 5h52'06''

2. Olav KOOIJ* TJV

3. Kristoffer HALVORSEN UXT

4. Antonio ANGULO SAMPEDRO ANTONIO EUS

5. Mick VAN DIJKE* TJV

6. Itamar EINHORN ISN

7. Michel ASCHENBRENNER* PUS

8. Sanz Gotzon MARTIN EUS

9. Milan MENTEN BWB

10. David PER ADR 

TOTAL:

1. Phil BAUHAUS TBV 5h51'56''

2. Olav KOOIJ* TJV +4''

3. Kristoffer HALVORSEN UXT +5''

4. Markus HOELGAARD UXT +7''

5. Fran MIHOLJEVIĆ* CTF

6. Marceli BOGUSLAWSKI MSP

7. Pawel FRANCZAK VOS

8. Anders SKAARSETH UXT +8''

9. Stephen WILLIAMS TBV +9''

10. Antonio ANGULO SAMPEDRO ANTONIO EUS +10''

To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.

ZAGREB, 28 Sept, 2021 - The chiefs of staff of the member states of the US-Adriatic Charter (A5) signed a joint statement at a conference near Split on Tuesday in which they advocate strengthening cooperation between countries in Southeast Europe for the sake of common security.

The statement was also signed by U.S. European Command (EUCOM) Deputy Commander Lieutenant General Michael L. Howard.

The conference, held in Podstrana outside Split, was organised by Croatia's Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Admiral Robert Hranj.

Apart from Croatian participants, also participating in the conference were the chiefs of staff of the US-Adriatic Charter countries Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and the United States, representatives of the observer countries Kosovo and Slovenia, and the commanders of the national guards of the partner US federal states, the Defence Ministry said in a press release.

"Since its establishment, the Charter has confirmed to be an important mechanism to strengthen regional cooperation and to assist countries in Southeast Europe on their journey to Euro-Atlantic, political, economic, security and defence institutions," the statement notes.

The A5 Charter is a regional security-defence initiative that was established in 2003 in an effort to assist member countries in accessing Euro-Atlantic associations.

"The point of the joint statement is that the US-Adriatic Charter is directed towards cooperation between countries in the region and our joint priority is to be secure," Admiral Hranj said.

"It is important that the United States is helping us through various mechanisms and one of those is cooperation with EUCOM," underscored Hranj, adding that that includes cooperation with the National Guard given that each of the A5 members has a partner in one of the US National Guards.

Croatia is the current chair of the US-Adriatic Charter and next year Montenegro will take over presidency of the initiative.

Montenegro's representatives informed us of their plans regarding US-Adriatic Charter presidency and I believe that Montenegro will successfully conduct its chairmanship, said Hranj.

Two large military exercises are planned for 2023 and the idea is to have all A5 member states participate with the assistance of U.S. forces, concluded Hranj.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 28 Sept, 2021 - Justice Minister Ivan Malenica said on Tuesday amendments to the laws on courts and the State Attorney's Office would soon be put to public consultation, adding that obliging judicial officials by law to say if they were members of any organisations was being considered.

He was asked by the press about the possibility of introducing that obligation for judges and state attorneys following the case of former attorney general Dražen Jelenić.

Jelenić resigned from that post in February 2020 after it was discovered that he was a member of a Masonic lodge. His successor Zlata Hrvoj Šipek requested disciplinary action against Jelenić and that he be suspended as her deputy.

"There is no such obligation now. There is a code of ethics which sets certain principles. State attorneys and judges should certainly remove any possibility which might influence their impartiality or jeopardise their independence," said Malenica.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

September 28, 2021 - The Tisja Kljaković Braić exhibition titled "Monument to a Living Person" is honouring two decades of Braić's humorous, open and simple art. Authored by Frano Dulibić, the exhibition will be displayed at the Klovićevi Dvori Gallery until October 12.

The beautiful seventeenth-century building of Klovićevi Dvori in Zagreb's Upper Town (Gornji grad) is a piece of art itself. However, as this seventeenth century Jesuit monastery became one of the most known and respected art galleries in the whole country, you can expect plenty of art inside too.

If you have doubts (or you trust the statement completely and you want to enjoy some visual eye-candy), hop over to the venue at Jezuitski Trg 4 (Jesuit Square 4), for the monographic exhibition ''Monument to a Living Person'' that will be on until October 12.

The author of the exhibition is the art historian Dr. Frano Dulibić who gathered and displayed the work of the iconic Croatian painter Tisja Kraković Braić.

"Tisja Kljaković Braić has been part of the art scene for the last twenty years. After twenty years of dedicated work, there are many reasons to present the artist through a compilation of her best and most characteristic artwork. The exhibition at the Klovićevi Dvori Gallery will present her work from its initial phase of art brut painting, as well as her lyric, poetic paintings, sculptures, and drawings,'' Bulić said when explaining the motive of his display, as is written on Klovićevi Dvori's official website.

TCN readers may recall an interview with Kljaković Braić back in 2020 as she authored a book of caricatures on Dalmatian life entitled ''ONI'' (They).

Scene from the "Monument to a Living Person" © Galerija Klovićevi dvori

''ONI'' are not left out in this exhibition either, and twenty years of Braić's work has made her art noted for its simple lines and shapes that gaze at you with openness, brazenness, honesty, and humor. It has been rated as primitive but certainly not in a bad way, quite on the contrary, due to effective ''waking up'' seen as a response from onlookers.

''With her primitivism, Tisja builds on many artistic paragons, from Paul Klee to Alberto Giacometti and Jean Dubuffet, who left significant marks on the art world. Nowadays, due to negative cultural implications, the art world seeks to avoid the term ''primitivism'' and appropriately replace it. At this point, the inevitable question arises: what is it in primitivist art forms that lures contemporary artists towards it, in a time of so many different art movements and ‘…isms’ passing us by?

The answer lies in an aspiration for disassociation from the frantic chase after something new and yet unseen, and an association with what is original, archetypal, primordial, and uncorrupted, that is, with the age when everything began,'' concludes Dulibić. Valentina Bach is the curator of this exhibition which is located on the first floor of Klovićevi Dvori. The gallery is open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 11:00 – 19:00.

Learn more about Croatian Art Galleries in Zagreb, Dalmatia, Istria & Slavonia on our TC page.

For more about art in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.