Zagreb - During a two-day official visit to Zadar, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Saturday the coastal city was “one of the examples of how to run a successful tourism policy.”
He noted that Zadar had a strong tourist season marked by the opening of several five-star hotels run by global chains, adding that unemployment in Zadar County had fallen below 3%, one of the lowest rates in Croatia.
Jandroković reviewed major local projects presented by Mayor Šime Erlić and County Prefect Josip Bilaver, covering infrastructure, transport and education, including the construction of three kindergartens, completion of a medical school and the establishment of regional centres of excellence in healthcare and mechanical engineering.
He said large investments in rail infrastructure would require significant funding but would add transport, tourism and economic value to the wider region.
Mayor Erlić said Zadar was continuing to grow as a tourist destination while improving residents’ quality of life.
He added the city was preparing projects under the upcoming affordable housing law to build homes for young families and low-income citizens.
Erlić also announced the upcoming launch of a waste management centre that would make Zadar among the few Croatian regions with a fully integrated waste system at an advanced technological and environmental level.
Prefect Bilaver highlighted transport infrastructure projects, including new municipal berths, railway upgrades, expansion of Zadar Airport’s runway, land allocations for young families, and the start of construction on a new air traffic control centre.