As the Dutch warn their citizens against all but essential travel to Croatia amid the coronavirus pandemic, Germany decides to keep Croatia on its ''safe'' list...

As Index writes on the 23rd of July, 2020, after the Dutch placed Croatia on the orange list, which means that those who return home to the Netherlands from Croatia need to spend fourteen days in self-isolation, some good news has arrived from Germany.

The German Ministry of Foreign Affairs has kept Croatia on its list of safe countries, the Croatian Tourism Association announced.

Below is their statement:

"In the latest report published today by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Croatia is [classed] as a safe destination and there are no restrictions on travel and return to Germany.

Germany is the largest European emitting market [for Croatia], and the Germans have been the most numerous group of guests in Croatia for many years. Since the beginning of this year, Germans have realised more than 4 million overnight stays in our country, of which 2.5 million took place during the first 20 days of July.

Since Bavaria, from which a third of German guests come, will start with their school holidays next week, a further increase of arrivals of German tourists in Croatia is expected.

In almost five months, since the first case of coronavirus infection was recorded in Croatia, there is still no official information that even one foreign tourist has become infected in the commercial tourism sector,'' they announced.

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The ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which has raised its ugly head here in Croatia once again after a couple of weeks of relative peace, is seeing even some of Croatian tourism's most faithful guests cancel their reservations as the lie about Croatia being a ''coronavirus free'' country is exposed for what it is.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 23rd of June, 2020, athough holiday homes are currently one of the most sought-after types of accommodation, private renters are facing a very difficult peak season that will be affected by the latest developments with the coronavirus epidemic. But even without that, reservations are sinking.

''We have loyal guests and people who really wanted to come and kept their reservations until the very last minute, however, as the situation isn't improving, as we approach July and August and the dates of their arrival, they have started to cancel them. We all hoped that with these reservations and last minute bookings, we'd reach those 40 percent of last year's figures, but now it's slowly starting to be questionable,'' Martina Nimac Kalcina, president of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce's Family Accommodation Association, told Novi list.

Thus, for example, as she states, there is an example that the Slovenes, who are the closest to Croatia geographically and who booked their holidays even during the height of the coronavirus epidemic, are now cancelling their reservations. The southern counties, such as Dubrovnik-Neretva County, are especially dependent on airlines, unlike Kvarner and Istria, which can easily be reached by car.

''Everyone hoped that it would be better, but since it isn't, it's important to do someething with what we have left for July and August. But it should also be noted that guests who still do have reservations really want to come. It's just that their arrival will depend on the situation at the border, quarantines and the airlines,'' concluded the president of the Family Tourism Association of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce.

Family accommodation expert Nedo Pinezic sought to make the reminder clear that it is difficult for the Croatian tourism sector as a whole to try to be smart in this situation, given that the booking situation changes from day to day, and it is mostly influenced by the epidemiological situation in Croatia and the increase in the number of patients infected with the new coronavirus.

This coincides with the announcement of the German Robert Koch Institute where they said that all travelers from Germany who travel to regions that have more than 50 patients per 100 thousand inhabitants, will be required to be tested or quarantined upon their return home to Germany. The number of patients is being monitored, primarily by individual regions. It is also clear that more vulnerable groups of guests, such as seniors, are being very cautious indeed.

For more on Croatian tourism in the coronavirus era, follow our dedicated section.

Is there a place for Croatian food on the competitive market of nearby Germany? It seems that yes, there is, and rich Croatian honey has already won the hearts of many German shoppers.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Bernard Ivezic writes on the 1st of June, 2020, GoGreen, the brand of Croatia's largest agricultural cluster and the first domestic smart market until three years ago, was taken over and reactivated in mid-March by the Zagreb-based company Anytime Logistika. In the new business, GoGreen is only part of the business. The main focus is on logistics, wholesale and exports.

Anytime Logistika has just done its first job for Germany's largest retail chain, Edeka, which is 50 percent larger in Germany than Lidl and Kaufland combined and holds more than a fifth of the German market. Among other things, it placed Croatian food such as honey there. Alan Slapar, who started the GoGreen brand, and who is now working at Anytime Logistika on the development and digitalisation of domestic producers, says that Andrea Rukavina runs the business here in Croatia and Tomislav Hunic runs it over in Germany.

"The deal with Edeka was agreed upon by Tomislav Hunic, who lives and works in Germany, and who noted that all those there in the field, already present on the markets, find it easier to communicate with local procurement managers than even we from Croatia can,'' said Slapar. He added that he is already working on other customers because the market for Croatian food and agricultural products in Germany really does exist.

Here in Croatia, the company is working to strengthen its storage capacity. Anytime Logistika currently has a warehouse in Sesvetski Kraljevec of 140 square metres in a cooling mode from 2 ° C to 6 ° C. However, they are also building a new one which will span a significantly larger 750 square metres and in which there will be a deep-freeze cooling regime of -18 ° C and a temperature of 12 ° C.

"The warehouse will be equipped for the quick freezing and packaging of fresh and seasonal fruits, and there will also be a special system for washed and sliced ​​vegetables, such as already peeled and sliced ​​potatoes, zucchini spaghetti, salads and such things,'' explained Slapar.

They are also arranging warehouse and sales points in Zagreb and the surrounding area, but the emphasis is being placed primarily on wholesale. He stated that that is why they offered support to online stores, launched the HoReCa-Point sales channel for catering and decided on a precedent in Croatia. On the Anytime Logistika website, it will offer the possibility to order all products available in stock in real time.

"One of the basic problems in the distribution of agricultural products in Croatia is that producers don't even have a catalog of their products so that wholesale or retail customers can even come to find out what they actually have to offer. And if the customers don't know, then they won't even bother ordering,'' noted Slapar.

He stated that they are therefore working intensively on digitalisation with the Croatian producers they work with. Each manufacturer that enters their system also enters a catalog which they then offer on various markets depending on the product and their respective capacities. He pointed out that he wasn't surprised that doing business that way has intensified over the past two months and that family farms have taken an interest in GoGreen yet again.

"I don't attribute the interest so much to GoGreen as much as I do to the new chaos and hysteria, because Croatia hasn't invested in more creative ways of distribution for years, and with the arrival of the new coronavirus and isolation measures, it proved to be a big issue for all companies," explained Slapar.

Anytime Logistika currently has, he said, even better collaboration with larger manufacturers than it has with smaller ones. He explained that this is the result of a market shock.

"Because of these sudden market declines, now 'everything is possible'', ''everyone is good'' and there is potential in everything," Slapar concluded.

For more on Croatian food, produce and other products, follow Made in Croatia.

Fifteen Croatian companies will be being presented to German partners at the German-Croatian Economic Forum which kicked off on Monday.

When one thinks of Germany from the perspective of Croatia, one likely imagines little other than a fatter wage packet every month, better working conditions and a distinct lack of uhljebs. A strong, highly developed economy and a level of efficiency the world over envies are just some of the advantages life in Germany can provide.

Germany has always been a favourite ''destination'' for Croats looking for better pay, better lives and a significant cash injection to their pension pots, and this has only increased since Croatia joined the EU back in July 2013, but must workers be Croatia's main export to Germany?

As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 10th of February, 2020, the German-Croatian Economic Forum opened in Frankfurt on Monday, organised by the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the Industry and Trade Chamber of Frankfurt, the Croatian World Congress in Germany, the Croatian Economic Association and the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK).

As mentioned, fifteen Croatian companies will be introduced to the German-Croatian Economic Forum through sessions with more than a hundred German businessmen.

''Germany is an important economic partner to Croatia. Unfortunately, to date, we've mostly exported workers to Germany who have proven to be of exceptional quality. But we want to show that we also have an innovative economy and quality products. Personally, I'd like to see the trend reversed, that people come back to us, and that as many products as possible go into export,'' said HGK President Luka Burilovic.

The German partners include OG Consultancy Services, a business started by the second generation of Croatian expatriates in Germany, and Eccos, a high-tech company for the implementation of electrical, IT and security solutions. The second part of the day with the Croatian economic delegation to Germany will be held in Mainz.

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As Morski writes on the 18th of January, 2020 FOKA d.o.o. and the owner of that company Vedran Dorušić, as the person who discovered an extremely valuable and significant underwater archaeological site on the island of Pag, more precisely the remains of an ancient Roman shipwreck from the 1st century AD, will take great pride in presenting Pag and the Letavica underwater site at the nautical fair in Düsseldorf (Boot Düsseldorf, from the 18th to the 26th of January, 2020) as part of the promotion of Croatian tourism for 2020.

The island of Pag is not only recognised by both Croatian and foreign visitors as an excellent destination for family and active holidays, but also as a site that abounds in archaeological sites from various periods of time, among which sites from ancient times stand out. One such site is a recently discovered submarine archaeological site - Letavica.

The Letavica site lies at a depth of 37 to 39 metres, at the boundary of the rocky and sandy slope of the seafbed, at a distance of about 130 metres from the coast. It regards a group of about 400 visible amphorae that are typologically classified into the group Lamboglia 2, and can be divided into several variants. Judging by the basic characteristics of the form, the amphorae can be dated to the 1st century BC, the time of the Roman Republic. The amphorae are mostly covered with marine vegetation and coalesce, with only a small fraction having escaped from the main concentration of the findings.

At a distance of about 38 metres to the northeast, there is a lead piece of an ancient lead-wood anchor, 1.6 metres in length, which probably belonged to the same ship. In the immediate vicinity of the part of the anchor lies the bottom of a larger ceramic vessel, the details on which currently remain unknown,'' said Vedran Dorušić.

''We discovered the Letavica site on July the 27th, 2018, during a regular dive. We changed our plans because there weren't any obstacles to that - so we went deeper. This is the only ancient shipwreck up to a depth of 40 metres that you can dive to without needing to be protected by a metal cage - so the diving experience is far more powerful,'' says Dorušić, revealing that there are about 400 visible Lamboglia 2 amphorae on this amazing site alone.

The location of the findings on the seabed indicates that it was not cargo that fell from the ship's deck during the accident, but sank to the seabed with the entire ship.

The length of the main concentration of amphorae is about 23-24 metres and indicates a ship length of 25-30 metres.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle page for much more.

As Novac writes on the 6th of January, 2020, while many young Croats take advantage of Croatia's European Union membership and head off in their droves to Ireland or Germany, Kristian Hostić decided to move to Croatia from Germany, the country of his parents, to which he had only been going on holiday so far, writes DW.

He grew up in Stuttgart, where his parents moved to from Croatia originally. He graduated from the Faculty of Economics and got a comfortable job at Mercedes. Although he had good conditions and a good salary, he decided a year and a half ago to leave a secure job in Germany and move to Croatia. Ge returned to his family home in Đakovo.

''I always wanted to live in Croatia, but at the time I graduated from college, the salary level in Croatia was still very low. I looked at job postings occasionally and a year and a half ago I simply decided to do it. I feel at home in Croatia, my heart is where it's meant to be here, even though I grew up in Germany and have friends there, it's just a feeling, you either feel it or you don't feel it,'' he says, adding that his parents supported him in his move to Croatia, as did his friends, even though they were in shock, they didn't try to deter him. 

He now lives in his parents' home in Đakovo and travels 40 kilometres to Slavonski Brod every day for work. He found his job at a German certification and risk assessment firm - Tüv Nord, where the working language is German. This German company has been operating in Slavonski Brod for five years now, employing 50 people, mostly Croats who have returned from Germany.

Although it is a German company, the salaries at Tüv Nord are not German. Kristian doesn't mind that, and he says that he is pleased because he has been given the opportunity to move to Croatia and work in a normal workplace, where the Croatian mentality prevails. In addition, he found love in Croatia - his girlfriend Marijana. He wants to build a future in Croatia, precisely with her.

According to official statistics, most of the Croats who have left Croatia were precisely from the overlooked Eastern region of Slavonia, and their destination was mainly Germany. From 2008 to 2018, 240,000 young Croats went to Germany and Ireland. Kristian is convinced that most of these young people or their children will return or move to Croatia once, as he did.

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The German Government has published a map on its official website which highlights the German regions missing the most workers, and what type of workers they are. Despite the overused rhetoric from politicians and indeed the current presidential candidates, Croatian demographics aren't looking very healthy, at all.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 31st of December, 2019, the Immigration for Qualified Workers Act enters into force on March the 1st, 2020. This law also applies to workers from all countries which are outside of the European Union, including workers from neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina, writes buka.

This new law provides the legal basis for the migration of skilled workers to Germany and has been designed and is intended to make it easier for academic and professional experts from non-EU countries to come to work in Germany. German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed that the new law is "a paradigm shift in the way we want to approach professionals who are from outside the European Union".

The German Federal Government has agreed with the federal states, business associations and trade unions on concrete steps to be taken against the shortage of workers in that country, a country which many Croats have settled and begun working, furthering the weakening of Croatian demographics and its picture.

In a signed letter of intent, the participants agreed, among other things, to expedite the procedures for issuing and recognising visas. In addition, professionals and their relatives coming to Germany should receive greater support from companies when seeking accommodation.

At the same time, while Germany wants to help out foreigners who could be useful to them, they continue to want to make full use of the domestic labour potential.

"We have various measures and laws that give all people in Germany a chance to really work and make money,'' the chancellor announced. The steps that German is taking requires close cooperation between businesses, unions, the federal government and the states.

Federal Labour Minister Hubertus Heil stressed that it must be ensured that professionals quickly find the companies they need.

''We want to avoid unnecessary red tape, streamline validation procedures, better equip visas and digitise the entire application process,'' he stated.

In Germany, there is a shortage of workers, especially in the craft, nursing and technical fields, and yesterday we wrote an article about how much Croatian ''majstori'' are in demand in Germany, contributing even more to poor Croatian demographics, as many feel they are more respected and of course properly paid for their work abroad than in Croatia.

On the map published by the German Government, the red colour indicates the states where the workers are most needed. The more intense the red, the more workers are missing.

As can be observed, southern Germany is where the workers are most needed. 

2020 is expected to see the continued emigration of Croats, as well as other nationalities from neighbouring, non-EU countries. Germany is more than likely going to be the target country for the vast majority.

For more on Croatian demographic, follow our politics page.

Minister Darko Horvat said that all forty required parameters for the investment have now been satisfied and that the government had put together a proper offer. On Wednesday, the Croatian Government will open talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the arrival of Volkswagen in Croatia.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Bernard Ivezic writes on the 20th of November, 2019, this information was announced by Economy Minister Darko Horvat at the HUP conference "Industry 4.0 - Opportunity and/or Challenge" held on Tuesday in Varaždin.

Although just three weeks ago, VW production chief Andreas Tostmann told Reuters that they were not looking for an alternative location for their new one and a half million euro factory, Horvat claims that the government has prepared a bid for a German investor, and that it is determined to try to get a positive decision for this investment to be realised here in the Republic of Croatia. Horvat states that the government has received and processed all of Volkswagen's management requirements and even found three potential locations for the plant.

"The talks are beginning tomorrow (today, op.a.) with Ms. Merkel about VW realising its investment here in Croatia, The government has put together a bid for VW and found three locations where there are one million square metres of land, and all of the other conditions, which regard 40 parameters, are ready as were requested in order to realise that investment,'' Horvat said.

He added that there were three potential locations for the factory: Varaždin, Ivanić-Grad and Dugo Selo. In no other part of Croatia have they found so much available land ready for investment combined with all of the other conditions, such as human and educational capacity and development plans for twenty years.

"We want to brand Croatia as a destination of excellence and we'll either create such opportunities ourselves or we'll just remain the domain of selling the sun, the sea or healthy food, although we're aware that a good deal of our food is actually imported," Horvat says.

The minister said the Croatian Government was also working on several other things to steer Croatia in the direction of Industry 4.0. He confirmed that talks on the new Labour Law had now begun at the Ministry. The new law, he explains, should acknowledge the reality that a framework for project-oriented jobs must be created.

"Ultimately, we have to allow someone from abroad to be able to come to Croatia to work for two or three years, do their job and then move on, because this is legal migration that is happening in our neighbouring countries and this is a trend that would help us out too," Horvat noted.

He added that changes were also being made to the Investment Promotion Act. It would allow that the condition for obtaining benefits under this law need not be the hiring of new people. In addition, the status of unused state property will be redefined, which will particularly benefit tourism.

However, the minister says they want the positive effects of the bill to be specifically targeted at industry.

"Next week, we're launching a new IRI tender, the so-called IRI2, which will for the first time enable large companies with more than 250 employees to compete for funds, and thus have access to 770 million kuna in capital, and the government is ready take it a step further next year and do an IRI 3 contest,'' says Horvat.

He emphasised the fact that there are around 400 large companies operating here in Croatia, which have the highest capacity to absorb R&D funds and that they're expected to make the greatest economic shifts from using these funds. In addition, the Ministry of the Economy expects that Ernst & Young's consultancy will help Croatia to complete the National Artificial Intelligence Development Program by the end of the year.

The ministry also expects the completion of the Centre for Innovation, Advanced Technology and Skill Development, which should be operational soon. Additionally, Minister Horvat announced the first concrete move this Friday.

"Today, we're going to test the new system out internally, and on Friday, everyone in Croatia will be able to open obrts, j.d.o.o.'s and d.o.o.'s from their living rooms through the Start application, through which eight institutions are networked, including HZMO and HZZO and banks, so you'll be able to immediately open a bank account,'' Horvat concluded.

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