Croatian diaspora in Australia wants to invest in homeland

Croatian President Ivo Josipovic met recently with a delegation of Croatian emigrant entrepreneurs from Australia interested in investing in their homeland.While there has been an increase in interest in such investment from the Croatian diaspora, it has so far amounted to approximately 15 million dollars or 11.7 million Euros.Josipovic emphasized that Croatia's relationship with its diaspora was very important and could contribute to the country's advancement, business portal Poslovni Dnevnik has reported. The diaspora, he said, was a real link between Croatia and the rest of the world."Croatia must be a place to which they can return and in which they can invest," he said.There was a significant increase in Croatian exports to Australia last year, with them rising by almost 50 per cent to 25 million dollars (19.5 million Euros) year on year.At the same time, imports from Australia decreased by 30 per cent or by 6.6 million dollars (5.1 million Euros) year on year as a result of the economic crisis in Croatia.

Source: Croatian Times Online News