The Commission approved two cohesion projects of a total of 156.6 million euro from the Cohesion Fund, to upgrade water and wastewater infrastructure in Croatia. 105.6 million euro will be invested in the Kaštela-Trogir area, and 51 million euro in the Zaprešić area. Both projects should be operational in 2023.

In Kaštela-Trogir, the upgrade will increase the water supply connection rate, allowing almost the entire population of the project’s area (63,000) to be connected to the network. It will also increase the connections to the wastewater system, from 45% to 97% of the population.

In addition, this project aims to tackle sea water pollution. This will improve the quality of bathing water in this area where tourism accounts for 3,500 jobs. 350 km of water supply and waste water network will be built or refurbished, in addition to the extension of the Divulje wastewater treatment plant and the construction of a similar plant on the island of Čiovo.In Zaprešić, almost 7,000 inhabitants will get access to better drinking water service as the result of EU-funded works on the network, which will see reduced water losses. More than 19,000 people in the area will now be connected to the wastewater network, thanks to 135 km of additional pipeline. Cohesion investments in Croatia over the period 2014-2020 will allow 2 million people to have access to better water supply and wastewater treatment.