Businesses Offer Minister Plavcan Cooperation with Education Reform

Bratislava, July 26 (TASR) – Six employer organisations and business associations under the auspices of the French-Slovak Trade Chamber sent an open letter to Education, Science, Research and Sport Minister Peter Plavcan (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) on Wednesday to offer him cooperation in the process of drafting and implementing the National Programme for Developing Education, TASR learnt on the same day.

Aside from the French-Slovak Trade Chamber, among the letter signatories are also the Association of Industrial Unions, Hispanic-Slovak Trade Chamber, Slovak-Austrian Trade Chamber, Swedish Trade Chamber in the Slovak Republic and the Automobile Industry Association.

The open letter directly follows up on numerous professional discussions these organisations and associations have had with ministry representatives over the course of the past year.

“The representatives of individual organisations jointly contact the education minister and point out the critical shortage of a qualified labour force. They concur on the shared interest and need to ensure a qualified labour force for the Slovak economy via education processes, which would meet the structure and needs of the Slovak economy,” reads the letter.

To that end, the organisations submit to the minister a document titled Assessment of Key Problems in the Sphere of Education, in which they articulate specific proposals and measures in order to turn the situation around. “The signatories of the letter hope that this offer of cooperation and call for dialogue will be met with positive feedback and that the education ministry will acknowledge, consider and evaluate all formulated proposals with an eye towards meeting the joint goal and ensuring Slovakia’s competitiveness also in securing an abundance of a qualified labour force,” reads the text.