At this year's RegioStars competition for the selection of the best EU projects, organized by the European Commission, in the category ‘Skills and Education for Digital Europe’, the Croatian e-School project won in strong competition.

The Ministry of Regional Development and European Union Funds nominated the project for the award during the challenging period caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, recognizing its key role for the Croatian education system because it enabled quality monitoring and participation of teachers and students in the home-based teaching process.

The e-School pilot project worth HRK 306 million, which was co-financed from EU funds with 85% of its value, was designed and implemented by the Croatian Academic and Research Network - CARNET. E-schools started to be implemented in 2015, and by the end of 2018, digital literacy and maturity of 10% of Croatian primary and secondary schools had increased. Thanks to these great results, the Government of the Republic of Croatia recently started the second phase of this project worth 1.3 billion kuna. The goal of the Ministry of Science and Education is to digitally transform teaching and business processes in Croatia by the end of 2022.

The general objective of the e-School program contributes to strengthening the capacity of the primary and secondary education system with the aim of training students for the labor market, further education and lifelong learning. In digitally mature schools, teachers use technology to improve teaching, develop their own digital content and provide support for independent learning and the development of critical skills in students who are at the heart of the teaching process. Thus, students actively participate in teaching with increased motivation to learn and continue their education, and thus become more competitive in the labor market. The management of e-Schools is efficient and transparent, and communication and exchange of e-documents between the school, its stakeholders and founders is much simpler.

More information about this year's RegioStars competition can be read here, and additional information about the e-School project can be found via the following link.