New Regional Development Minister promises more support for Croatian islands.
Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds Gabrijela Žalac said that her Ministry strongly supported the development of islands and announced the possibility of forming a special department within the Ministry devoted to islands, in order for greater focus to be put on the issue, reports Nacional on October 29, 2016.
“We must improve living conditions for people on the islands and create conditions for them to stay there and develop their full economic and tourist potential. The Ministry of Regional Development has established a clear position towards the Croatian islands, and by using EU funds we will more firmly support their development”, said the Minister, who visited the island of Brač and held a meeting with local and county representatives. The meeting was also attended by Minister of Construction and Spatial Planning Lovro Kuščević and Minister of Tourism Gari Cappelli.
Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds has decided to strengthen its support and pay more attention to Croatian islands. Minister Žalac announced that the Ministry was currently considering the possibility of forming a special department within the Ministry in order to have a larger team of people devoted just to this subject. Given the importance and the number of islands in Croatia, it is certain that they will have an important role in the new budgetary plans of the Ministry.
Ministers were briefly informed about projects on the island of Brač which are already being implemented or are ready to be submitted as proposals for grants from European Union funds. They were also informed about the Blaca project. “These are projects that will enrich the tourist offer and give impetus to people to continue living on the Croatian islands. I sincerely hope that the Blaca project will be realized with the help of EU funds. The islands are pearls of this country and our great fortune, and therefore we are proud to announce the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Croatian Island Product project”, she said.
Minister Žalac also attended the Days of Croatian Tourism event which was held on Brač. She praised the results achieved by the tourism sector this year and announced that she was convinced that the next season would be even more successful, partly due to grants received from the European Union funds.
