September 9, 2018

Will the last person to leave Croatia (click here) please turn the lights out! Croatia is getting smaller, and no I don’t mean physically, it population is shrinking faster than a man’s private regions in a cold Adriatic Sea.

The exodus that was forecast when Croatia became a full member of the European Union in July 2013 seems to be coming true. Droves and droves of people are leaving in search of a brighter future in richer EU members. Germany, Ireland and Sweden are the leading destinations for Croatian ex-pats. The devastating statistics show that since the last census in 2011, more than 200,000 people emigrated from Croatia, out of which 30 percent from Slavonia, or 70,000 people.

And to make matters worse, as if the figures weren’t bad enough already, the majority of people that are leaving are young, well-educated professionals, exactly the kind of people that Croatia needs to help build a stronger and healthier future. Young doctors, young businesspeople, entrepreneurs, scientists, dentists, teachers, lawyers have all been attracted to the brighter lights of Berlin and Dublin.

This exodus of the talented youth, tomorrow’s backbone, is a clear picture that that something has to be done, as opposed to the current strategy of burying our heads in the sand collectively and hoping for the best. Even the Croatian President came out this week to criticize the government for not doing enough to protect our tomorrow and to create employment opportunities....

Croatia's Pearl of the Adriatic has promise (click here)