The reconstruction of Zagreb and surrounding areas following the March 22 earthquake will cost HRK 42 billion (€5.6bn) and will require 100,000 workers annually, the dean of the Zagreb Faculty of Civil Engineering, Stjepan Lakusic, said on Thursday.

Speaking in a Croatian Radio programme in the morning, Lakusic stressed the need to reskill people to ensure a sufficient number of workers for reconstruction projects, adding that 2021 would be a year of adjustment and that the reconstruction process was running late.

Marija Cagalj, the vice-president of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) for construction, transport and communications, expressed confidence that Croatians who had left the country in search of work would return when they saw how much work there would be over the next 10 years. She said it was important to ensure funding and invite these people to return.