March the 6th, 2024 – Welcome to Croatia is the very first Croatian foreign worker integration programme, aimed at addressing the very real need for the influx of third country nationals to integrate into society.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, in cooperation with the Edward Bernays Polytechnic, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) is launching the Welcome to Croatia education programme with the aim of integrating foreign workers into society and the business community, the first of its kind in Croatia.
The cycle of workshops starts in Pula, where from March the 25th to the 29th, foreign workers from the tourism sector will learn about the specifics of Croatia as a host country in the context of national identity, as well as social and cultural norms and values. On top of that, they will also learn the basics of the Croatian language, get to know with the legislative framework, the basics of safety at work and more.
The first Croatian foreign worker integration programme is otherwise an interdisciplinary educational programme that meets the challenges of integration and the basic training of citizens of third countries in Croatia. It will work as an aid for their easier inclusion in social flows and work in the tertiary sector.
“Listening to the needs of the domestic economy, as well as calls from various social spheres that it’s now necessary to start implementing integration programmes for the increasing number of foreign workers coming to our country, we’re starting to implement programmes that will familiarise foreign workers with the basics of Croatian society and business norms. Given that over 170,000 new work permits are expected to be issued this year, I believe that in synergy with the Croatian Employment Service’s (CES) voucher for learning Croatian for foreigners, we can contribute to their integration into society. The aforementioned measures are the first steps towards a systematic and comprehensive integration and immigration policy, in order for Croatia to attract and retain a quality workforce”, said the president of HGK, Luka Burilović.
In the first step, the current plan is to hold 10 cycles of education in various major cities in Croatia. The Croatian foreign worker integration programme is done in person, in English, at the headquarters of the HGK county chambers or at a specific employer’s premises.
