Cultural policy in Slovakia is created in cooperation of several ministries and sectors. For the development of youth cultural policy, the most crucial is the cooperation of education and culture administrative bodies. An important role is being held out also by the authorities at local level (municipalities) and regional level as well as relevant non-profit organizations. They are responsible for the establishment of cultural and youth centres. Their strategies and supportive approach are playing an important role in youth cultural participation (8.2).  

In Slovakia, art schooling has a long-standing tradition. Formal education in the field of art is carried out as tertiary education (primary, secondary and tertiary) and falls within the competence of the Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic (MERDY SR).   

Elementary Schools of the Arts and Secondary Schools of the Arts are part of the regional education system. Responsibility for their establishment and governance is shared between the state and local self-government (municipalities or self-governing regions) and, where applicable, church or private founders. Elemenatry Schools of Arts are platforms for development of cultural and creative interest, as well as place for discovering talents and their enhancement. Within specialized secondary art school education, the contemporary state linked-up on the original network of state conservatories and secondary art and technical schools (ŠUP). In addition to art schools and conservatories, young people can develop cultural, creative and artistic interests and activities through the services of institutions that offer leisure activities (so-called non-professional art). A special role for finding talents have competitions and exhibitions under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic and Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic (8.5).  

In 2024, the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic announced its intention to reform the cultural voucher system and replace the universal distribution of vouchers with a new model of cooperation with schools entitled “Culture for Schools.” The new system replaced the cultural voucher scheme introduced in 2006, which had been undergoing transformation since 2022. In 2023, part of the support for non-formal education was transferred to the Slovak Arts Council through the call “Art for Schools.

Since 2025, the “Culture for Schools” project has been implemented as a ministerial programme of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic, providing direct funding for educational activities in cultural institutions in order to facilitate pupils’ contact with culture and cultural heritage. The programme is carried out through a network of organisations established by the Ministry (it does not constitute a separate grant mechanism). 

In 2025, the first activities were delivered primarily by state cultural institutions, including the Slovak National Museum, the Slovak Design Center, the University Library in Bratislava, the State Scientific Library in Prešov, and the Centre for Traditional Folk Culture – the Slovak Folk Art Collective (SĽUK).

At the same time, key priority areas under the responsibility of the Ministry of Culture include the protection, preservation and presentation of immovable cultural heritage at the national level, as well as support for the culture of disadvantaged population groups. Among the priority areas under the responsibility of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic are the protection, preservation, and presentation of immovable cultural heritage at the national level, as well as support for the culture of disadvantaged population groups.

Since 2023 web portal Slovakiana, one of the largest cultural heritage digitization project, has been an official member of the network of national aggregators that enable heritage institutions to share their digital content with the European digital cultural heritage platform Europeana. The portal provides access to more than 183,000 digitised cultural objects from Slovakia, including collection items, textual and archival documents, monuments, works of visual art, expressions of traditional folk culture, natural heritage, and audiovisual production originating from 78 Slovak memory institutions.

Among the key projects for 2026 is the European Capital of Culture – Trenčín 2026, under the subtitle Cultivating Curiosity. This international initiative, linking Slovakia with other European cities, promotes cultural cooperation, supports the presentation of domestic artistic production in an international context, and aims at the sustainable urban and social transformation of the city and the region. The total budget exceeds €30 million and is financed through a combination of municipal, state, regional, European Union, and private sources