"Let's prevent the collapse of universities in Slovakia!"

Universities fulfill the entire spectrum of missions and tasks. The higher education sector is crucial for economic development and crucial for building a knowledge-based society. There is no economic area in which universities do not play a significant role through research and development. Higher education serves both public and private purposes. It supports a society that is more prosperous, richer and more vital.

Universities are on the verge of collapse. In recent years, it is no longer possible to talk about their development, but today not even about their dignified survival, or survival at all. Due to the previous cuts in the budget of public universities in 2021, 2022 and the planned decrease in 2023 by a total of 72 million euros, it is not possible to ensure the basic operation of public universities.

We therefore strongly call on the Slovak government to

1. reverse the negative development of higher education funding. We ask that the funding reach at least the level of 2020.

2.    compensate the sector of higher education institutions for the outages caused by the unprecedented energy crisis.

3.    finance shortfalls in national and European projects in the same way as in neighboring countries.

If these requirements are not fulfilled, the universities will close their doors and stop fulfilling their mission from November 17, 2022.

Slovak Rector's Conference, Tále, September 13, 2022