ZAGREB, 3 Dec 2021 - A project - Smart Villages - EU Concept for the Development of Rural Communities - was presented on Friday in Vukovar, with Croatian MEP Tomislav Sokols saying that the document represents a good basis for efforts to keep young people in rural areas and halt the scaling down of the local population.

"Investing in health and education infrastructure, developing business, good management, strengthening human resources and building additional capacities in communities are required for the concept of the smart village to come to life in the full sense," said Sokol and added that this is a new concept that is supported by the EU and has already opened new prospects for Croatian villages.

According to Sokol, the Smart Villages project "will enable the development of health, education, traffic and other infrastructure throughout rural areas to make them more attractive, particularly for young people."

Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković, who attended the presentation, supported the concept saying that the ministry would continue to finance social and utility infrastructure and that it has gone a step further and will request financing for agriculture infrastructure.

"There is no smart village without smart people, nor a future without young people. That is why we have increased planned support units through the 6.1.1 operational programme which is earmarked for young farmers," said Vučković.

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