February 14, 2020 - The Municipality of Podstrana can boast that it has implemented projects, worth approximately 20 million kuna, co-financed by European and national funds.

“Employees of the Administrative Department for Public Procurement, Economy, Social Affairs and EU Funds of Podstrana Municipality work hard to apply and implement projects co-financed by European and national funds,” said Mayor Mladen Bartulovic.

Vecernji List writes that one of the most valuable projects is the sea-river promenade and the Podstrana walk & bike track, worth around 10,000,000 kuna. It was funded by the European Union from the Cohesion Fund for 8,500,000 kuna.

As part of the project, a bicycle path and promenade from the mouth of Zrnovnica to the sports harbor Strozanac were constructed and equipped, along the left bank of the river.

“This project created a recognizable appearance of the Podstrana Municipality, and thus enriched the tourist offer of our municipality as an attractive tourist destination,” emphasized Bartulovic.

Podstrana municipality is a leading partner of the ECOMAP project, which is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund as part of the INTERREG ITAL-CRO cross-border cooperation program. Six other Italian and four Croatian partners are participating in the project. ECOMAP is a project for environmentally sustainable management of marinas and tourist ports, with a total value of around 2.8 million euro. The EU finances 85 percent of the project's value, and the remaining 15 percent each partner finances by themselves.

The aim of the project is environmental protection to improve the quality of the sea and the coastal area. The Municipality has submitted a project for the construction of a sewage system to be constructed as part of the coastal zone from Strozanac to the Lav Hotel, worth approximately 619,000 euro, of which the EU funds 526,000 euro. One of the project partners is the Strozanac Sports Fishing Association, which will acquire and install equipment for chemical and physical treatment of wastewater generated during ship washing, as well as provide a device for pumping and receiving fecal, i.e., black water, from boats and yachts.

Significant for all Podstrana residents is the construction of the Perun Recycling Yard, an ongoing project worth 9,160,000kuna, co-financed by the European Union from the Cohesion Fund, in the amount of 4,200,000 kuna. Related to this is the Thinking ECO project, worth around 1,200,000 kuna, co-financed by EU Cohesion Fund (85 percent). The project promoter is the City of Solin, and the municipalities of Podstrana, Klis and Dugopolje are co-owners of the activities. The Thinking ECO project is designed as a program of information-educated activities aimed at raising the environmental awareness of the residents of the towns involved about their active role in reducing and preventing waste.

The reconstruction of the intersection of Hercegovacka Street and King Zvonimir Street, worth approximately 1,380,000 kuna, is co-financed by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development of 894,388.41 kuna.

The project Zaželi, worth around 6,100,000 kuna, of which 1,697,449.20 kuna refers to the Municipality of Podstrana, was financed by the European Social Fund. For the preparation of project documentation for the sports center Miljevac, the Ministry of Regional Development and EU funds approved 600,000 kuna, and for the amendments to the Strategic Development Program of the Municipality of Podstrana, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development approved 48,000 kuna.

Podstrana Municipality has submitted 20 projects for various tenders, of which 20 projects have been approved for co-financing: improving the coastline from the mouth of the Zrnovnica River to Strozanac, Phase 4 to be co-financed by the Ministry of Tourism in the amount of 225,000 kuna; fixing the beach with stone material co-financed by the Split-Dalmatia County of 400,000 kuna, as well as repairing damages in the coastal area in the municipality, which again is co-financed by the County in the amount of 100,000 kuna. The Split-Dalmatia County co-financed the arrangement of roads in the Podstrana area for 36,500 kuna. Podstrana Municipality has been granted a voucher of 15,000 euro to provide free wi-fi access to the public areas of the municipality to local residents and visitors.

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Ever since Croatia joined the European Union (EU) back in July 2013, the country has seen European Union funds made readily available to it across various different categories, and Croatia has taken part in many EU initiatives and praiseworthy projects. As Morski writes on the 25th of August, 2019, this, the latest in a long line of EU projects joined in by Croatia, is the Blue Islands project, and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County (Primorsko-Goranska) in western Croatia is participating.

The Blue Islands project, which is a project of the European Union and is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under the INTERREG V-B MEDITERRANEAN Transnational Cooperation Program 2014-2020, has been put in place to attempt to identify and mitigate some, if not all of the effects of seasonal increases in the amount of waste generated in the Mediterranean islands as a result of tourism.

This is a topic that has attracted a lot of attention, particularly over the last several years, as the general awareness among the public about the damage the use of certain materials causes to the planet has begun to come to the forefront of people's minds. Croatia's population shoots up incredibly during the warm summer months, as does the amount of waste left behind.

More specifically, during the summer, the population on the Mediterranean islands increases significantly, which, while being very beneficial for the local economy and local residents, is at the same time an enormous burden the local infrastructure of Croatia's islands.

The aim of the Blue Islands project is to promote sustainable tourism and raise awareness among locals and tourists about the need to keep the beaches clean, in Croatia and beyond, with the entire Mediterranean region in mind.

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As Lucija Spiljak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 7th of August, 2019, EU funds are now imperative for certain segments of Croatian prosperity and primarily for regional development, and data from the Ministry of Finance shows the amount of funds withdrawn back in 2018.

According to the portal gradonacelnik.hr, referring to the competent ministry's unconsolidated data (there are no visible institutions and companies of cities or only cities as partners, so the amount is higher), in 2018 as many as 97 Croatian cities withdrew more than 314 million kuna, three times more than was recorded back in 2017. The amount of European Union support per capita is tenfold, with Komiža on Vis reaching as much as 2,505 kuna, in Pleternica 1,222, and in Lipik - 1,157 kuna per capita.

This is a significant shift, especially since Croatia is one of the less developed countries, and is located in one of the less developed regions of the EU. The most successful recapitalisation of all Croatian cities remains the most successful the Northern Adriatic city of Rijeka, with a share of more than ten percent. Osijek and Pleternica follow.

"We knew that we'd be able to count on EU funds, which is why we had a large number of ready, well prepared projects and used the opportunity that was given to us," said Rijeka Mayor Vojko Obersnel, according to the aforementioned portal. Koprivnica's mayor, Mišel Jakšić, agrees entirely.

"This year was a record year for us when it comes to attracting European Union funds. Currently, the city has contracted 23 projects worth 61.7 million kuna, from the reconstruction of roads and energy renovations of schools and kindergartens to investments in the education system. We're the first Croatian city to have implemented the so-called innovative green public procurement through an EU project, "said Jakšić.

Ludbreg and Zadar proved to be the most successful Croatian cities in the five years of the first financial period - Ludbreg withdrew an average of 554 kuna per capita per year, and this year alone, they applied for projects worth 18 million kuna, with a focus on environmental protection and landfill remediation.

In Ludbreg, they have completed more than 40 projects in five years and continue at full steam. An 18 million kuna project will also get going there - the construction of an archeological park, ie, the reconstruction of ancient spas and the construction of a museum. This project, which should further enrich the tourist offer of the city of Ludbreg, should be completed in one year.

In five years, Zadar has gained more than a seven percent share. The projects in that city in coastal Dalmatia are aimed at rebuilding cultural and social centres; and with the reconstruction of two palaces, it became yet another Croatian UNESCO city, while further projects focused primarily on entrepreneurship.

Some of the most successful projects are being implemented by Šibenik, which this year started with the revitalisation of the Fortress of Sv. Ivan, worth a massive 49 million kuna, and, with the help of 41 million kuna from the Regional Development Fund, with the largest project of drainage and sewerage system design to date, which will make it a city with 99 percent of the population coverage by the water supply.

To briefly recall, in the 2014-2020 financial period from the European Structural and Investment (ESI) Fund, Croatia has a total of 10.676 billion kuna available to it, of which 8.38 billion kuna is for cohesion policy objectives, 2.026 billion kuna is for agriculture and rural development, and 253 million kuna is for fisheries and their development.

According to data from the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds, since June, nearly two billion euros have been entered into the Croatian state budget. More than 88 percent of the total allocated funds were announced, 68 percent were contracted, 22 percent were paid to their end users, and 18 percent were certified.

Although Croatia, as the youngest member of the EU, has encountered more than one stumbling block in the road, it seems that the country has nevertheless caught up in terms of European Union funds, seeing them as an important source of funding.

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As Morski writes on the 2nd of August, 2019, the project to improve the water and utility infrastructure of the Kaštela-Trogir agglomeration will be co-financed by the European Union in the amount of 803 million kuna in grants after the study documentation received the green light.

The total value of the project, which stands at 1.15 billion kuna, will be implemented by a responsible Split water and sewage company, and will be co-financed with a 69.78 percent share from the Cohesion Fund through the Operational Competitiveness and Cohesion Program for 2014-2020.

The formal signing of the necessary contract between the Ministry of the Environment and Energy and Croatian Waters is expected at the end of August 2019, after all of the internal procedures and processes have been completed.

The Kaštela-Trogir agglomeration project is a major project held at the European Union level, as its total value exceeds 50 million euros. The project was previously approved by the Ministry of the Environment and Energy, Croatian Waters, and the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds, and finally by Jaspers, a partnership of the European Commission, the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and the German development bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW).

The Kaštela-Trogir agglomeration project covers the area of ​​the towns of Kaštela and Trogir, the Čiovo peninsula, the municipalities of Seget and Okrug, and the Slatine settlement.

With the implementation of this project, the water supply network will be expanded to an additional 7,700 inhabitants (a further 2,548 connections), increasing the connection rate to 99 percent, while at the same time, 32,477 inhabitants (8,613 connections) will be connected to the sewage system, which will raise the connection from the current 45 percent all the way up to 97 percent. The reconstruction of the water supply network should reduce water losses from 42 percent down to 36 percent.

The project includes the upgrading of the wastewater treatment plant in Divulje, a construction of a wastewater treatment plant in Čiovo, the expansion of the water supply network by a further 59.87 kilometres, the reconstruction of the existing network of 65.4 kilometres, the construction of four new pumping stations, two water tanks with a capacity of 500 m3; the extension of 215 kilometres of sewer collectors, 6 kilometres of pressure pipelines and 4 kilometres of sewer reconstruction, including the construction of 430 small pumping stations; the construction of 13 pumping stations, and 640 incident overflows.

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