The government decided at its meeting on Thursday to allocate €1.33 a day to finance or co-finance meals in elementary schools, and to continue funding the pilot project of free public rail transport for elementary and high school students.

The decision on the criteria and method of financing or co-financing the cost of meals for elementary school students for the second semester of the 2022/2023 school year was adopted based on the recent amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Schools Act, which set out the standards and eligibility criteria.

Money has been provided in next year’s State Budget, amounting to €42,515,097, for the second semester of this school year.

The decision aims to achieve equality and equal opportunities for all elementary school students to have a meal, Minister of Science and Education Radovan Fuchs said.

“I would like to underline that, in agreement with the founders, elementary schools will organize students’ nutrition based on their technical capabilities until equal technical capabilities are created in all schools in Croatia, which is planned to be achieved by the 27/28 school year. This primarily refers to school kitchens and canteens in all schools,” he added.

The pilot project of free public rail transport for all school children in Croatia, launched in October last year, will continue until the end of 2024, and the government adopted this decision to protect parents’ standards, mitigate the negative consequences of the global economic situation and inflation.

HRK 50 million in aid to Petrinja and Sisak-Moslavina County

The government granted HRK 50 million to the City of Petrinja and Sisak-Moslavina County to mitigate the consequences of the 2020 earthquake and help citizens in the area affected by the earthquake.

The funds will be used for the complete renovation of County-owned aged care homes whose reconstruction is not an eligible cost under the European Union Solidarity Fund.

This decision, along with previous government decisions, will contribute to the revitalisation of the earthquake-affected areas, the regular functioning of public services and institutions, and the improvement of public services, Minister of Physical Planning, Construction and State Assets Ivan Paladina said.

The government also allocated HRK 284,279 from the budget to the City of Petrinja to cover the cost of works on flood defenses following recent floods in Sisak-Moslavina County.