Final Conference Held: “Demography in Focus – Exploring Local and Regional Perspectives”

On Tuesday, 25 November 2025, the fifth and final conference in the series Demography in Focus: Exploring Local and Regional Perspectives was held in Sisak, organised by the Ministry of Demography and Immigration of the Republic of Croatia and the Catholic University of Croatia.

On behalf of the organisers, participants were welcomed by Domagoj Orlić, Mayor of Sisak; Prof. Hrvoje Štefančić, speaking on behalf of the Rector of the Catholic University of Croatia; and Željka Josić, MD, State Secretary at the Ministry of Demography and Immigration. The interdisciplinary team of the CUC Department of Sociology, led by the Vice-Rector for Education, Prof. Roko Mišetić, presented the results of the study on the current demographic situation and the demographic challenges faced by local and regional government leaders in the Central Croatia region, which includes five counties: Sisak-Moslavina, Zagreb, Karlovac, Bjelovar-Bilogora and the City of Zagreb.

The first part of the conference featured an introductory lecture titled Activities and Guidelines of the Ministry of Demography and Immigration, delivered by Mladen Barać, State Secretary at the Ministry. This was followed by a lecture on the current demographic landscape delivered by Dr Tomislav Belić, who concluded that demographic revitalisation based solely on internal potential is difficult to achieve. Dr Nika Đuho Vulin spoke about the (under)utilisation of demographic measures, while Assoc. Prof. Petra Palić presented the strengths, weaknesses and recommendations for further action in local government units across the Central Croatia region.

The second part of the conference comprised two panel discussions moderated by Assoc. Prof. Petra Palić. The first panel, How Can Entrepreneurship and Employment Drive Demographic Recovery in Central Croatia?, brought together Ivana Mehle, Deputy Director of the Croatian Employment Service, and Vlado Vujica, mag. ing., Head of the PISMO Business Incubator in Novska. The second panel, Affordable Housing as a Prerequisite for Demographic Renewal, featured Frane Tokić, State Secretary at the Ministry of Demography and Immigration; Tea Rambovsek Aleksić, Deputy Mayor of Petrinja; and Tomislav Jukić, Acting Director of the Directorate for Housing Policy, Housing Quality and Municipal Economy at the Ministry of Physical Planning, Construction and State Assets.

The conference conclusions were presented by Ksenija Slivar, Head of the Sector for Coordination of Public Policies for Demographic Revitalisation and Immigration at the Ministry of Demography and Immigration. This was followed by a fruitful discussion on measures to improve the demographic situation, involving CUC researchers, representatives of local and regional government units and Ministry officials.