Minister Horvat and Israeli Minister Cohen Sign Cooperation Declaration

Minister of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Crafts Darko Horvat met on Tuesday with Israeli Minister of Economy and Industry Eli Cohen, with whom he discussed opportunities for improving economic cooperation and signed a joint declaration on the cooperation of ministries.

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“The meeting highlighted the good friendly relations between the two countries and the possibilities for improving economic cooperation. The main topics of the meeting were the exchange of experiences in the field of digital transformation, which Israel has already implemented, knowledge transfer regarding artificial intelligence, and the revitalization of Croatian industry,” the Ministry of Economy stated.

According to reports, Israeli Minister Cohen emphasized that the indicators of economic cooperation are good, but there is still much room for their increase. Potential opportunities for this arise from the joint participation of companies from both countries in applications for research and development projects through the EUREKA, Eurostars, and Horizon 2020 programs, in which Israel participates very actively and achieves good results, it is noted in the statement.

Minister Horvat emphasized that Croatia will build several competence centers in the next ten years, in whose establishment and operation Israeli experience in the functioning of such centers will be of great help.

Both ministers agreed that it is necessary to familiarize Israeli companies with the advantages that the Croatian market offers in order to encourage their investments in Croatia and to provide support to Croatian companies to be as represented as possible in the Israeli market, thereby increasing bilateral economic cooperation.

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“Minister Cohen invited Minister Horvat to visit Israel with a business delegation, where there will be an opportunity for attendees to better understand the functioning of innovation centers and the creation of an innovation network in Israel,” the Ministry of Economy emphasizes.

The two ministers also signed a joint declaration on cooperation, aimed at enhancing economic, business, and technological cooperation between the Republic of Croatia and the State of Israel.

“Both ministers emphasized the need to initiate cooperation in joint research and development activities and the importance of promoting cooperation and information exchange in the field of information and communication technologies and digitalization. By adopting the declaration, a quality business environment will be encouraged in areas of common interest, including joint platforms for entrepreneurship and innovation such as exhibitions, business forums, seminars, and business meetings,” the statement notes.

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The Ministry of Economy also states that the Croatian delegation included Deputy Director of the Croatian Employers’ Association Bernard Jakelić and President of the Croatian Exporters’ Association Darinko Bago, who conveyed the experiences of Croatian companies in the Israeli market and presented their views on how to increase the volume of economic cooperation and intensify relations between Croatian and Israeli companies.