ZAGREB, 6 June 2022 - Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds Nataša Tramišak presented the first grant agreements within the Croatia-Serbia cross border cooperation programme for 2022, with a total value of HRK 3 million.

"For the first time, we are implementing a programme to strengthen Croats abroad, in this case, cross-border cooperation between Croatia and Serbia and have secured HRK 3 million from the state budget for 20 various projects for that," Minister Tramišak said.

She added that 65 projects applied worth more than HRK 10 million.

Tramišak recalled that during the pre-accession period and especially since it joined the EU, Croatia has implemented various European territorial cooperation programmes with neighbouring countries.

"In the new period 2021 - 2027, we will have Croatia - Serbia cross-border programmes with more than €42 million available," she underscored. Tramišak said that the condition for cross-border cooperation requires at least one partner each from Croatia and Serbia.

Žigmanov: Three key steps by Croatia towards Croats in Vojvodina

President of the Democratic Alliance of Croats in Vojvodina and Member of Serbian Parliament, Tomislav Žigmanov underscored that in the past few years three key steps were made in relations between Croatia towards Croats in Vojvodina.

Žigmanov noted that about 80% of Croats in Serbia live in Vojvodina in fact, adding that the first step was political support for Croats followed by more interest by the media in Croatia regarding how Croats in Vojvodina live.

The second step was when material and financial resources were increased, Žigmanov said, adding that two-thirds of that was earmarked for cultural institutions.

The third key step was cross-border cooperation between Croatia and Serbia which will be a great help to Croats in Serbia, who are the poorest Croats in the world.

For more, check out our politics section.

May the 10th, 2022 - Some people have been renouncing their Croatian citizenship, and we've had a far better look into precisely who has done that owing to the census taken back in 2021.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, according to the latest census which was conducted last year by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the Republic of Croatia has a resident population of 3,888,529 million people. As for those who renounced Croatian citizenship in 2021, 154 people were released from citizenship, and four more people simply renounced their citizenship.

In the first four months of this year, twice as many people renounced their citizenship, according to a report from N1. In the period from January the 1st, 2022 to May the 1st, 2022, 86 people were released from Croatian citizenship, while eight people renounced it, as was confirmed the Ministry of the Interior (MUP). According to the law, adult Croatian citizens who reside abroad and also have foreign citizenship may renounce their citizenship if they so wish, as they won't be made stateless by doing so.

The most common reasons for applying for the renunciation of Croatian citizenship are personal reasons, employment and education, said the Ministry of the Interior.

In order for a Croatian citizen to renounce their citizenship, a statement from the person who will then voluntarily lose (renounce) their Croatian citizenship on the day of giving the statement is sufficient. It is very important to note that in this case, an adult cannot regain Croatian citizenship after renunciation.

The Ministry of the Interior also clarified how much this process costs. If the application for termination of Croatian citizenship is submitted in the Republic of Croatia, an administrative fee is charged according to tariff number 9, paragraph 1 of the Decree on the Tariff of Administrative Fees (Official Gazette 92/21, 93/21 and 95/21) in the amount of from 2,520.00 kuna.

An administrative fee according to tariff number 43 of the Decree on the Tariff of Administrative Fees in the amount of 3,150.00 kuna is charged for an application for termination of Croatian citizenship submitted to a diplomatic or consular mission of the Republic of Croatia abroad. This tax covers all administrative and consular actions in the procedure of termination of Croatian citizenship, as stated by the Ministry of the Interior.

For more, check out our politics section.

ZAGREB, 16 Aug 2021 - A total of eight Croatian citizens have been evacuated from Afghanistan and the return of other Croatians from Kabul is expected later today and over the next few days, the Croatian Foreign Ministry said in a press release on Monday.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter earlier today that Ukrainian aircraft stationed in Afghanistan took citizens of Ukraine, the Netherlands, Croatia, Belarus, Afghanistan out of Kabul. He, however, did not specify the number of passengers on board.

The Croatian Foreign Ministry confirmed that the Ukrainian plane evacuated one Croat.

"The Croatian Foreign and European Affairs is using this opportunity to thank the Ukrainian authorities for enabling the return of the Croatian citizen, as well as the European Union and international partners who are helping in the repatriation of the remaining Croatian citizens from Afghanistan," read the press release.

There were approximately 30 Croatian citizens in Afghanistan, mostly employees of foreign organizations.

The Taliban declared the end of the war and took over Afghanistan's capital on Sunday after the government collapsed. Foreign countries, led by the United States, have started evacuating their citizens from Kabul.

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ZAGREB, June 9, 2020 - The Central State Office for Croats Abroad has granted a total of HRK 2.5 million for 153 projects by non-profit organisations of Croats abroad after receiving as many as 585 applications, the office said on Tuesday. 

Grants ranged from HRK 5,000 to HRK 60,000 and one applicant could have submitted two project proposals at the most.

None of the projects was granted the maximum amount of HRK 80,000. The single largest amount, of HRK 60,000, was granted to the Croatian National Council from Subotica, Serbia.

The Croatian self-governing authority in Budapest, Hungary and the Alliance of Croatian Associations in Lendava, Slovenia each received HRK 42,000 for their projects.

Four projects received HRK 38,000 each. These were submitted by the Croatian National Council in Tivat, Montenegro, the Croatian Printing Society from Eisenstadt, Austria and two associations from Subotica in Serbia.

Nine other projects received HRK 30,000 each, including a pilot project providing legal assistance by the Orahova humanitarian cultural association from Kotor Varos in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The only organisation to receive grants for two projects was the Croatian World Congress from Zagreb, receiving a total of HRK 45,000.

These grants are issued every year for Croatian associations and individuals outside Croatia. Croats living outside Croatia who are poor, ill or vulnerable members of the community can also be recommended for assistance.

This year 24 people were granted assistance ranging from HRK 2,000 to HRK 6,000, mostly from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

(€1 = HRK 7.569360)