Governance

The governance of youth work in the Slovak Republic is managed at state and self-government (local and regional) level. The Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic (hereinafter MERDY) is the central state authority in the field of youth and youth work. MERDY’s Section of Lifelong Learning - Department of Non-formal Education, covers the work in the field of youth.

At the level of the Parliament of the Slovak Republic, there are:

• The Committee for Children and Youth of the Council of the Government of the Slovak Republic for Human Rights, National Minorities and Gender Equality

• Committee of the National Council for Education, Science, Youth and Sport

• NIVAM - Slovak Youth Institute is a state institution, directly managed by the MERDY. The aim of its activities is implementation of state policy for children and youth.

Regional self-government offices ensure the administrative and organizational issues related to youth policy at regional level in the field of social support for youth. The self-governments advisory and coordination bodies create internal positions for professionals responsible for youth whose task should be to coordinate and methodologically support activities of all organizations and institutions active in this field in the region. As the obligation raising from the legislation each regional self-government has official document setting the regional plan for youth work development.

Other national public bodies who are directly involved in youth policies:

• Slovak Centre of Scientific and Technical Information

• State Pedagogical Institute

• The Research Institute for Child Psychology and Patho-psychology.

Cross-sectoral cooperation

The cross-sectoral working group for the state policy in the field of youth was established based on the Resolution of the Government of the Slovak Republic no. 192 of 23 April 2014 on the draft of Strategy of the Slovak Republic for Youth for the years 2014-2020.

In 2021 cross-sectoral working group has two main tasks: to evaluate the implementation of the Strategy of Slovak Republic on Youth for the years 2014-2020.

to participate in the process of developing a new Strategy of Slovak Republic on youth for the years 2021-2028.

See more on cross-sectoral cooperation in 1.5.