The mayor of Konjic, Osman Ćatić, as part of the Diaspora Days event “Konjic in the heart of BiH”, met with successful Konjic residents living in the diaspora, Nihad Tabak and Elma Žilić.
The meetings were an opportunity to familiarize the people of Konjic with the intention of the City Administration of Konjic to connect them more strongly with their homeland in various ways, presenting them with the activities that are planned in the field of economy, tourism development, culture, etc.
“Our desire is to make a significant step forward in the relations of the diaspora with the local community. The ideas, suggestions, experiences they have working for decades in the environments in which they have been realized are extremely valuable for us in order to hear their wishes and expectations, how and in what way to be more active to work together,” said the mayor of Konjic, Osman Ćatić, inviting the people of Konjic who live outside their homeland to attend the Business Forum of the Konjic diaspora, which will be held on Wednesday, August 16, 2023, in Konjic.
“I am happy with the activities that the City of Konjic organizes for the diaspora. I am emotionally attached to Konjic and I like to come here, where every time I see that something new is done, that new ideas are initiated and projects are implemented. The fact that there is interest in investing in Konjic is encouraging In 2019, I started a company in Bihać, which deals with the processing of aluminum profiles, with not great expectations, but the results exceeded all my hopes, we have over 60 employees and we are currently in the phase of building a new large hall. I consider the business forum of the equestrian diaspora extremely a useful activity that will give results. Given that I was involved in football professionally after arriving in Germany, I am glad that Konjic has lower successes in that regard, we have the first league team FK Igman, but also other sports teams whose results spread a good word about our Konjic,” said Nihad Tabak, a successful native of Konjic who lives and works in Germany.
Elma Žilić, who has been living and working in Istanbul in the Republic of Turkey for almost a decade and who also met with Mayor Ćatić during her stay in her native Konjic, emphasized that the potential that Konjic has in the field of tourism is immeasurable and that the area in which she is labor engaged through marketing and management, can be crucial when it comes to connecting the diaspora and Konjic as a local community.
“I am really happy that I was able to enjoy the content that was organized as part of the Diaspora Day ‘Konjic in the heart of BiH’, because this city and the homeland of Bosnia and Herzegovina is really deep in my heart and I felt how much attention is paid to people not forget their hometown. The business forum is something that can certainly bring many new ideas and opportunities for the further development of Konjic, that’s why I want to invite all Konjic residents, wherever they have chosen to live, to devote themselves more actively to connecting with their hometown, for the benefit of all of us and our children tomorrow, in which we need to develop a sense of belonging,” said Elma Žilić, who emphasized that she is happy to be able to proudly say Welcome to Konjic to all her friends, because, as she states, Konjic has something to offer everyone.
All those interested are invited to apply to the City Administration of Konjic via e-mail dijaspora@konjic.ba and thus establish contact with the local community from which their roots originate, Klix.ba reports.
E.Dz.
