Inter-ministerial cooperation between the Ministry of Culture and other ministries and central state administrative authorities relates mainly to the use of European Union Structural Funds. During the shortened 2004-2006 programming period, funding was also used in the area of culture and cultural infrastructure. As part of this cooperation, the Ministry focussed on the following activities in particular:
- possibilities to use funding from the Structural Funds and PHARE / Transition Facility Funds through the Ministry of Culture; and
- participation of the Ministry of Culture in external executive bodies.
The Ministry established a coordination committee to manage cooperation, while cooperation was implemented within the office of the Ministry by the Department for Structural Funds and Financial Instruments.
During the shortened 2004-2006 programming period, the Ministry of Culture made use of funding from the structural funds in the following operational programmes:
Basic infrastructure operational programme:
- priority: local infrastructure, measures for building and developing the cultural infrastructure, building and developing an information society for the public sector, and renovation and development of municipalities.
Industry and services sectoral operational programme:
- priority: improving the competitiveness of industry and services using domestic growth potential, measure: Support for the building and reconstruction of infrastructure; and
- priority: Development of tourism, measure: Support for the building and reconstruction of the tourism infrastructure.
Single Programming Document Objective 2 – Bratislava region:
- priority: Support for economic activity and sustainable development in the target area, measure:Support for social services in the area CR and recreation, Renewal and development of municipalities and preservation of cultural heritage.
Interreg III and Basic Infrastructure Operational Programme, measure: Building and developing institutional infrastructure in the area of regional cooperation.
Sectoral Operational Programme Human Resources:
- priority: Increased qualifications and adaptability of employees and persons entering the labour market, measures: Adaptation of professional education and training to meet the needs of the knowledge-based society; Increased scope, improvement and broader provision of continuing education in order to improve the qualifications and adaptability of employees.
Single Programming Document Objective 3 – Bratislava region:
- priority:The development of life long learning and the support for research and development in the context of human resources quality improvement.
PHARE / Transition Facility Fund 2005 – involvement in a project financed in the Internal Market sector.
The Ministry of Culture was represented in the following bodies for inter-ministerial cooperation addressing issues relating to the structural funds:
- equal representation of the Ministry of Culture in external executive bodies;
- the Government Council for Regional Policy and Supervision of Structural Operations;
- the Coordination Committee of the Deputy Prime Minister;
- the Committee of Director Generals at the Ministry of Construction and Regional Development;
- National Monitoring Committee for the Community Support Framework;
- Monitoring Committee for the Basic Infrastructure Operational Programme;
- Monitoring Committee for the Industry and Services Sectoral Operational Programme;
- Managing Commission for the Community Initiative Interreg III B CADSES;
- the Working Group for the Preparation of the2007-2013 National Strategic Reference Framework;
- the Inter-ministerial Working Group and Group of Specialists in Partnership for the National Framework for the preparation of the 2007-2013 National Strategic Reference Framework; and
- the Inter-ministerial Working Group for the Preparation of Innovative Forms of Financing that can be supported from the structural funds in the 2007-2013 period.
Activities in Slovakia in the new programming period 2007-2013 will be governed by the National Strategic Reference Framework approved by the European Commission on 17 August 2007. The individual operational programmes for the new period were then approved, of which the most important for the cultural sector are the Information Society (approved by the European Commission on 17 September 2007; the managing authority is the Slovak Republic Government Office; the financial contribution of the European Community to the programme is euro 993 095 405) and the Regional Operational Programme (approved by the European Commission on 24 September 2007; the managing authority is the Ministry of Construction and Regional Development; the financial contribution of the European Community to the programme is euro 1 145 million).
For culture, the National Strategic Reference Framework emphasises the acquisition, organisation, preservation and making accessible of documents and collections as moveable elements of cultural heritage. Museums, galleries and libraries play an essential part in this process. At present, Slovakia has 85 museums and 25 galleries, holding nearly 9 million items in their collections, and more than 7 000 libraries. In its strategy for the development of society and the regions, the document emphasises the importance of investing in cultural heritage sites, which have a significant influence on the productivity and competitiveness of a region. In this context, the document also emphasises that Slovakia is characterised by inadequately connected and poorly integrated urban planning, and practice and planning in relation to monuments and the environment. This fact limits the effectiveness of urban development and the protection of cultural heritage (buildings, moveable items and intangible heritage). There are 13 070 buildings recorded as monuments in Slovakia, of which 31% are in good condition but 19% (2 521 buildings) are damaged, nearly 6% (722 buildings) are derelict and under 6% of buildings are currently being restored.
In cooperation with the civic association Partnerships for Prosperity and the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Culture organised a professional seminar on 26 September 2007 on priority axis 2 of the Information Society Operational Programme Development of monument and fund institutions and the renewal of their national infrastructure. The topics under discussion were the digitisation of cultural heritage and the interoperability of information systems in the cultural sector and areas for the preparation and implementation of key projects in the following period.
Other areas of cooperation between the Ministry of Culture and other ministries are support for higher education, which is the responsibility of the Ministry of Education (the Ministry of Culture contributes from its grant programme towards the activities of the arts academies), cooperation with the Ministry of Interior in relation to archives (archives in Slovakia are the responsibility of the Ministry of the Interior) and cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on provision for the activities of Slovak institutes abroad and the presentation of Slovak culture in other countries.
The Ministry of Culture carries out the duties of the state administration in relation to the culture of national minorities and marginalised groups.Its main activities in this area are as follows:
- preparation of strategy materials relating to the development of minority cultures;
- concepts and analyses on conditions and status of persons belonging to national minorities in Slovakia;
- cooperation with parliamentary committees, with the section for human rights and minorities in the Government Office, the human rights department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and departments of central state administrative authorities working on national minority issues;
- cooperation with local government in towns and villages in creating conditions for the culture of national minorities;
- basic distribution of funding for the culture of national minorities through the Ministry of Culture grant system; and
- provision of grants for church funding.
The administrative activities of the ministry in relation to national minorities are carried out by the Directorate General for Minority and Regional Cultures.
The problem of tolerance in various areas is addressed by the following ministries and institutions in their areas of responsibility, with whom the Ministry of Culture cooperates in questions of minority cultures:
- the Deputy Prime Minister for the Knowledge Society, European Affairs, Human Rights and Minorities;
- the government representative for the Roma community – coordination of state policy towards the Roma ethnic group;
- the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
- the Ministry of Interior – Migration Office;
- Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family – equal opportunities, social inclusion;
- Ministry of Education – provision for minority education;
- regional governments; and
- local governments.
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