Fico: Life in Slovakia Not Perfect, But Also Not Bad
Bratislava, June 10 (TASR) - The Slovak economy is not perfect, but life in Slovakia isn't bad and the country is far from being a "black hole", as critics of the current government often claim, Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) declared after Wednesday’s cabinet session.
Fico was responding to the Report on Productivity and Competitiveness of Slovakia, which the government took note of on Wednesday. The Institute for Strategies and Analysis (ISA) at the Government Office identified ten key obstacles to improving competitiveness and productivity in the report.
According to the findings, Slovakia ranks among EU countries with weaker competitiveness. In 2024 it placed 23rd out of 27 EU member states in the ISA ranking, although this was an improvement by one position compared with 2022.
"Not everything is perfect. But I cannot keep accepting reports that entrepreneurs are dissatisfied. Surely it's most important that people are satisfied, not only entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs are extremely important, but I am a representative of a social democratic government, I am a left-wing prime minister, and I believe we must primarily take into account people who earn their living through their own work. I take these characteristics into consideration, we're dealing with them, and we're also reviewing a transaction tax,” Fico said.
He also pointed to several areas where the country is performing well, including statistics showing more people returning to Slovakia than leaving it, and record-low unemployment.
Despite challenges faced by Slovakia's foreign trading partners, the Slovak economy is expected to keep growing, as is its tourism, the prime minister said. Several new investments are also expected.
"I am fairly optimistic, I do not belong among those who would claim that Slovakia is a black hole, and I am absolutely convinced that life in Slovakia is not as bad as the opposition says and as the Slovak media present it,” Fico added.
According to the opposition party SaS, the Report on Productivity and Competitiveness of Slovakia is a self-assessment of the government, confirming what the opposition has been warning about for months — that Slovakia is lagging behind, living standards are falling, and the government is unable to adopt measures to restart the economy.
"Today we again expected the government to finally present concrete pro-growth measures. Instead, it approved a document in which it admits that Slovaks have the lowest net wages in the V4 (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia) region. Economy Minister Denisa Sakova also states in the report that Slovakia has an extremely high tax and levy burden on labour and that labour costs have risen dramatically in recent years. In other words, the government is today approving the consequences of its own governance,” said SaS leader Branislav Groehling.
According to SaS, the biggest problem is that the cabinet already knows the diagnosis but still refuses to apply treatment.
"The government has today itself admitted that Slovakia is lagging behind. It must now find the courage to admit that it bears responsibility for this state. And then finally start taking measures that will genuinely help people and the economy," said SaS vice-chair Marian Viskupic.
