How we act

Caritas Croatia's programmes and projects:
Developing parish Caritases

Caritas Croatia finds its greatest strength in its parish Caritases. 

There are virtually 1,500 parishes in Croatia. Parish Caritases are exceptionally important because the enable direct contact with the people, their problems and misfortunes and this is the best way to prevent social problems and the most effective way of educating the local community. 

It is Caritas Croatia's intention together with the co-operation of its 14 diocesan Caritases to establish a well developed network of parish Caritaes that will be effective within the parish and local community attending the needs of the poor, oppressed and looking for shelter. 

Cropax – Peace Building Programme

Caritas Croatia’s Peace-Building Programme was initiated in the spring of 2002 as a consequence of an international conference on Forgiveness and Reconciliation which was organised in Zagreb in 2001 in co-operation with the Franciscan Institute for the Culture of Peace. 

The peace-building programme was conceived with the objective of motivating the Church and society to be involved in establishing peace comprehended in the all-encompassing Biblical sense of Shalom. 

The programme included activities that can be divided into basic areas: 

  • Education and training for peace and reconciliation 
  • Promoting peace in the Church and society 
  • Co-operation in peace building 
  • Publishing and collecting publications and material relating to the culture of peace 

A series of introductory seminars and workshops were organised as part of the programme intended for the directors and animators of diocesan Caritases and for Christian youth groups. 
Participation at regional and international conferences and working groups with papers submitted, training sessions conducted and membership to the Caritas Europa International Peace and Development Committee. 

The Peace Week: was a special event with public promotions, lectures about great peace makers; children’s workshops; meditative prayer groups and various concerts were organised. The programme’s leader attended public events organised by other Church organisations and associations as well as appearing in local and foreign media.

Co-operation motivated between Church organisations and Christian associations as well as other Christian Churches and religious communities on the topic of peace and reconciliation in the country and the world. 

The Caritas Internationalis’ Peace-Building Handbook was translated and it forms the basis of seminars and workshops. 

In the following period training programmes concerning peace-building will continue in the form of introductory and advanced seminars and workshops – within the Caritas network as well as in co-operation with other Christian and youth groups and movements and interested non-government civil organisations. 

Sessions will be organised to train diocesan Caritas delegates to be able to conduct peace-building workshops based on the Handbook. 

Promotional activities similar to the Peace Week will continue with the possibility of repeating the programme in other cities throughout Croatia. 

Plans are underway to prepare material for publishing about the culture of peace in an attempt to popularise this topic with special emphasis on children and the young.

Monitoring and diminishing poverty

A national survey of poverty in Croatia that will give not only numeric data but will also show the human face of poverty. This survey should help Caritas Croatia to develop its structure to offer a quality response to the demands of poverty; new and innovative ideas for projects to diminish poverty; help in motivating volunteers; and advocacy towards local and national government institutions.

At the same time, Caritas Croatia has some concrete projects for poor families and individuals through its national projects and campaigns.

Non-profit management

In co-operation with the Catholic Theological Faculty,  University of Zagreb Caritas Croatia has initiated a post-graduate specialist study course in Management of Non-profit Organisations and Social Advocacy.

The aim of this programme is to assist Caritas and other Church organisations in the non-profit sector in Croatia in general to adopt new know how and skills in managing non-profit organisations as well as advocating to change society.   Generally, this study course will contribute towards developing civil society. 

The course consists of four semesters. This project was made possible with the assistance of Caritas Germany. 

Family counselling centres

In 2002 Caritas Croatia in co-operation with the German Diocese of Rottenburg -Stuttgart launched a programme to develop a network of church family counselling centres. The objective of the programme is to offer expert assistance for the Church’s pastoral care of marriage and the family. 

Within the programme “Expansion and development of a network of Church family counselling centres”, twelve family counselling centres were opened around Croatia, two church family counselling centres in B&H and 25 Church family counsellors received expert training.

Qualified church family counsellors are people with Christian beliefs who have graduated in social studies, psychology, theology, social work, speech therapy or medicine. 

Church family counselling centres together with state run institutions have initiated a series of activities and projects directed towards protecting the young, marriages and families offering free counselling to all those in need of spiritual or psychological help. 

The work of the church family counselling centres show their importance in participating to resolve current problems in society such as growing violence in the family, the large number of divorces and diminishing family values. At the same time, it is necessary to continually monitor this work, further training of qualified counsellors hence Caritas Croatia has initiated a project for further qualified training of church family counsellors to work with risk groups, perpetrators of violence and victims of violence.

By June 2007, four supervisory and four further training session were organised on the topic of violence in the family. 

Addressees of Church family counselling centres:

OGULIN
Obiteljsko savjetovalište
Gajeva 2
47 000 Ogulin
Tel: 047/ 522-323
Fax: 047/811-148

OSIJEK
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Vukovarska 156
31 000 Osijek
Tel/Fax: 031/530 959

POŽEGA
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Vukovarska 7
34 000 Požega
Tel:034/ 272-988

RIJEKA
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Slaviše Vajnera Čiče 2
51 000 Rijeka
Tel:051/330-467
Fax:051/215-287

RIJEKA
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Tizianova 11
51 000 Rijeka
Tel:051/514 381
Fax:051/513 603

SLAVONSKI BROD
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Kumičićeva 14
35 000 Slavonski Brod
Tel/ fax: 035/411-420

SPLIT
Obiteljsko savjetovalište
Gundulićeva 5
21 000 Split
Tel/fax: 021/480-890

ŠIBENIK
Obiteljsko savjetovalište
Težačka 106
22 000 Šibenik
Tel: 022/216-096
Fax:022/216-668

VARAŽDIN
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Zagrebačka 3, p.p.247
42 000 Varaždin
Tel:042/314-165
Fax:042/314-169

ZADAR
Obiteljsko savjetovalište
dr.Franje Tuđmana 24/0 p.o. 193
23 000 Zadar
Tel/fax: 023/ 314-252,
023/301 317

ZAGREB
Obiteljsko savjetovalište
Kaptol 31
10 000 Zagreb
Tel: 01/4894-828
Fax:01/4894-896

ZAGREB
Bračno i obiteljsko savjetovalište
Crnojezerska 2b
Susedgrad
Tel/ Fax: 01/3457-175

International solidarity

Caritas Croatia is a relatively small Caritas organisation however it has not neglected to send aid to the international community and show its solidarity in emergency situations recognising the significance of aid sent to Croatia during the war. 

Thanks to the solidarity of Croatian citizens, Caritas Croatia has forwarded help to Kosovo, Turkey, Venezuela, El Salvador, India, the Czech Republic, Iraq and Iran.

Apart from sending money, Caritas Croatia was the first humanitarian organisation in Croatia to send its own volunteers to the Czech Republic following the huge floods. 

In various actions on the international front organised during 2005 and 2006, CC managed to put aside 800,000 Euro or 6 million HRK. Funds were forwarded to help South Asia following the tsunami and earthquake, the USA following Hurricane Catherine, the hungry in Kenya, Indonesia following the earthquake as well as victims in the Near East.

Funds raised during these campaigns were forwarded to Caritas Croatia’s sister organisations Caritas Internationalis and Caritas Europa as well as local Caritas organisations and were earmarked for various purposes but always in co-operation with these organisations to purchase medicine, school uniforms and equipment, clothing and other articles for expecting mothers, water pumps, children’s food, for housing reconstruction or to purchase fishing boats. 

Advocacy

To advocate and change the structures of injustice is one of Caritas Croatia’s main objectives. Caritas speaks out for those who cannot, who are in fear or who do not know how to improve their position or to fight against injustice. 

One of the best examples of Caritas role in advocacy was the case of a little HIV positive girl who after Caritas’ intervention was allowed to attend a public school which had been disrupted due to social stigma. 

Another example is Caritas’ involvement in the issue of no work on Sundays to implement legislative amendments that will prevent large stores from being open on Sundays. This action is being implemented jointly with the unions in an effort to prevent the violation of human, workers and family rights.