STATE OF THE EUROPEAN CITIES
Slovakia
Country Profile
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ContentsPAGE

1.0Country Profile: Slovakia

1.1National Urban System

1.2Competitiveness - Trends and Challenges

1.3Social inclusion - Trends and Challenges

1.4City Governance in Slovakia

1.5References

1.0Country Profile: Slovakia

1.1National Urban System

Key characteristics
  • The Slovakian capital, Bratislava, is by far the country’s largest city, with a core city population (428 672 inhabitants) almost twice that of the next largest city of Košice (236 093 inhabitants). The surrounding region (Bratislavský kraj), which largely corresponds to the travel-to-work area and is used as the “Larger Urban Zone” in the Urban Audit, is home to some 600 000 people;
  • Alongside Bratislava and Košice, the other two Slovak cities included in the Urban Audit are Nitra (population 86 726), and Banská Bystrica (population 83 056), which are respectively the fourth and sixth largest urban settlements in Slovakia;
  • The capital is Slovakia’s most important economic centre. Its location near the borders with Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic has facilitated an increased specialisation in the commercial and service sectors, while the economy of Košice remains dominated by heavy industry (steel) and mechanical engineering.

1.2Competitiveness - Trends and Challenges

This section provides a snapshot of competitiveness indicators in Slovakian cities, based on the Urban Audit data, and highlights some of the main trends and challenges they face. The focus is on population, recent inward migration, economic performance, economic structure and “competitiveness drivers” (educational levels and accessibility). For each indicator, the following table presents the most recent Urban Audit data for a selection of key cities; the minimum and maximum values observed in Slovakian cities; the un-weighted average of all Urban Audit cities and the national average, where available.
  • Slovakia underwent a period of relative “de-urbanisation” between 1996 and 2001, as populations fell while the national population remained stable. The largest population decline was seen in the capital, where the number of residents in the core city fell by over 1% a year on average in the five-year period in question. The annual fall was lower in Košice and Banska Bystrica (-0.46% and -0.47% respectively), with the smallest decline seen in Nitra. These patterns reflect a general trend of suburbanisation in Slovakia;
  • Rates of recent inward migration are comparatively low in Slovakian cities. 2.16% of the resident population in Banska Bystrica in 2001 had moved to the city in the previous two years, compared to equivalent figures of around 1.8% in Bratislava and Nitra and 1.53% in Košice;
  • The period of sustained growth in the Slovakian economy in the period five years up to 2001 is reflected in economic growth rates in the Urban Audit city regions over the same period. GDP in the Košice region (Košický kraj) grew the fastest at an average annual rate in excess of 5%, while the lowest rate of growth was seen in the Nitra region (Nitriansky kraj) where the rate was only just below the national average at 3.1%. In absolute terms, the Bratislava region generates by far the greatest level of economic wealth per person in Slovakia, with a GDP per capita figure well over twice that of the next wealthiest city region (222% of the national average compared to 94% in Košice);
  • This economic disparity between the capital and the rest of the country is also visible in employment rates, which, at 72%, are markedly higher than other Slovakian Urban Audit cities and the national average in Bratislava. Indeed this performance places Bratislava among the cities with the highest employment rate in Europe. In contrast, the employment rates in Košice, Nitra and Banská Bystrica were, respectively, 60%, 61% and 65%;
  • While manufacturing accounts for a high proportion of employment in the Slovak economy (35.6% in 2001), this proportion was lower than the national average in all Urban Audit cities. This said, employment in manufacturing in the industrial centre of Košice (still the location of important steel and engineering operations) and in Nitra (primarily in food processing, furniture and engineering) is only just below the national figure. Employment in “public service” sectors such as administration, health and education accounts for roughly 30% of jobs in all Slovakian Urban Audit cities, except Banská Bystrica, where the higher proportion is at least partly explained by the presence of national government agencies, such as the tax authority;
  • The proportion of resident with some form of higher education qualification is higher than the national average in Bratislava, lower in industrial Košice (30% and 20% of resident compared to a national average of 24%) and average in the other two cities.

1.3Social inclusion - Trends and Challenges

Based on key indicators available from the Urban Audit, this section focuses on “social inclusion” in Slovakian cities. As data on the proportion of foreign residents is not available from the Urban Audit, we focus on theaffordability and quality of housing, health status, unemployment and civic involvement. Unemployment rates provide best available indication of overall risk of social exclusion in the UA data set, given the difficulty of comparing relative poverty levels.
  • The Slovakian housing market is characterised by high rates of owner occupation (74% in 2001[I]) and a majority of urban dwellers live in flats, rather than houses (over 80% of households in Bratislava, Košice and Banská Bystrica and over 70% in Nitra[II]). The figures for the average price of flats per m2 in 2001 illustrate the strong disparities between the Slovakian cities, with prices in the capital almost double those in the “cheapest” city of Banská Bystrica and nearly 30% higher than in Košice, the next most expensive Urban Audit city;
  • In contrast to certain other EU Member States there is no significant variation in the basic quality of the housing stockbetween Slovakian Urban Audit cities. Between 4% and 5% of dwelling lack basic amenities;
  • Data on deaths from heart and respiratory illnesses is only available in Slovakia for Bratislava, so it is not possible to identify differences between cities. The annual mortality rate in the capital is 0.89% - only marginally below the national average of 0.87%, but significantly above the un-weighted of all Urban Audit cities in Europe (0.68%);
  • In 2001, the unemployment rate in Slovakia reached a peak of 19.3%. The proportion of the active population without work was below the national average in all Slovakian Urban Audit cities in the same year, although there were considerable differences between cities. Thus, while unemployment remained comparatively low (below half the national rate) in Bratislava (8.8%), it reached almost 20% in Košice. The problem of youth unemployment was even more dramatic, with rates ranging from almost 25% in the capital to almost 50% in Košice;
  • Turnout at local elections in Slovakian cities is amongst the lowest in Europe. In common with cities in the CzechRepublic and Bulgaria, the average level of turnout in municipal elections is around 30% in Slovakia. Turnout is lower in the larger cities.

1.4City Governance in Slovakia

National Context
  • Slovakia is a unitary state with a parliamentary system of government. Although the President of the Republic is directly elected, executive power lies with the prime minister and government. The country is subdivided into eight regions (kraj) and, at the local level, 2 887 municipalities (obec). In addition, the country is officially divided into 79 districts (okres). However, since the abolition of District Offices in January 2004, these have only been used for statistical purposes and have no real administrative function;
  • The regions are both a unit for local government and for the territorial organisation of decentralised State functions. Autonomous regional governments (samosprávne kraje) were established in 2002, with directly elected assemblies and a directly elected chair person. They are principally responsible for regional development strategy, health and regional cultural policy, but also work directly with the State in fields including social affairs, transport and roads, education and civil defence;
  • Municipalities are governed by a directly-elected mayor (Starosta) and municipal council. They have responsibility for services related to infrastructure and physical planning, local economic development, local public transport, local health centres, housing, local police and culture as well as education and social services.
Urban Context
  • BratislavaandKošicehave a two-tier governance structure, with a city-wide municipal administration and (respectively 17 and 22) city parts or “boroughs” (mestských častí), each with their own municipal council and mayor. Certain municipal functions are delegated from the central municipality to the boroughs;
  • Other cities are governed in the same way as other municipalities in the country, with the same basic responsibilities and powers.

The Relative Power of Government Levels in Slovakia
Rank / Level / Remarks / Evolution in last 10 years
1 / National / Decrease
2 / Region / Kraj / Increase
3 / City / Obec / Increase
4 / SubCity / “Boroughs” in Bratislava and Košice only / NA
- / County / None (formerly Okres) / NA
- / Metropolitan Area / None / NA

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The role of city-level government in comparison to other levels of self government (See below for definitions of spatial levels)

Spatial levels
Thematic Area / Activity / SubCity / City / Met. Area / County / Region / National / Comments
Economy and business / Developing and managing strategic regeneration plans for the City / 1 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 1 / Shared between regional and municipal level
Taking planning decisions for development and granting planning permission / 1 / 4 / - / - / 0 / 0
Providing direct support for inward investors / 0 / 1 / - / - / 3 / Regional responsibility
Providing direct support for small businesses / entrepreneurs / 0 / 3 / - / - / 1 / Municipal responsibility
Housing / Developing and managing housing strategy / 1 / 3 / - / - / 0 / 2
Planning and financing construction of social housing / 1 / 3 / - / - / 0 / 2
Ownership of social housing / 1 / 3 / - / - / 0 / 2
Health / Developing and overseeing health strategy / 0 / 1 / - / - / 3 / 2 / Health is a regional responsibility
Managing and providing primary care services / 0 / 3 / - / - / 2 / 1 / Most health centres are run by municipalities
Managing and providing care for the elderly / 0 / 0 / - / - / 3 / 1 / Health is a regional responsibility
Management of hospitals / 0 / 0 / - / - / 3 / 1 / Health is a regional responsibility
Policing / Developing and overseeing local policing and crime prevention strategy / 0 / 1 / - / - / 2 / 3
Managing Municipal Police / 0 / 4 / - / - / 1 / 1 / Local police
Labour Market / Developing and overseeing employment strategy / 0 / 0 / - / - / 2 / 2
Managing public employment service / 0 / 0 / - / - / 2 / 2
Managing active labour market schemes / 0 / 0 / - / - / 2 / 2
Social Security / Managing and delivering unemployment benefits / 0 / 0 / - / - / 0 / 4
Managing and delivering of sickness / disability benefits / 0 / 0 / - / - / 0 / 4
Managing and delivering old age pensions / 0 / 0 / - / - / 0 / 4
Education and Training / Strategic management of nursery schools / childcare provision / 0 / 3 / - / - / 1 / 2
Strategic management of primary schools / 0 / 3 / - / - / 1 / 2
Strategic management of secondary schools (10/11-16) / 0 / 3 / - / - / 1 / 2
Strategic management of institutions for 16-19 education / 0 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 2
Strategic management of adult education / 0 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 2
Strategic management of Higher Education Institutions / 0 / 0 / - / - / 0 / 4
Transport / Developing and overseeing local transport strategy / 0 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 1
Direct role in operating local public transport / 0 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 1
Direct role in procuring local public transport / 0 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 0
Planning and financing new local transport infrastructure / 0 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 2
Culture / Recreation / Developing and delivering a cultural strategy / 1 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 2 / Institutions at all levels
Direct management of libraries / 1 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 2 / Institutions at all levels
Direct management of museums / 1 / 2 / - / - / 2 / 2 / Institutions at all levels
Role of "self-governing" public authorities
  1. no involvement
  2. limited contribution / involvement (eg consultative role)
  3. partial or shared responsibility
  4. lead responsibility
  5. sole responsibility
/ Administrative Level / Name / Directly elected council / assembly?
Sub city level / City parts / Boroughs is Bratislava and Košice / YES
City level / Municipality (Obec) / YES
Metropolitan Area / No / NA
County or equivalent / No / NA
Regional level / Kraj / YES

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1.5References

  • Committee of the Regions (2003) Devolution in Slovakia, September 2003
  • European Liaison Committee for Social Housing (CECODHAS).
  • MISSOC (2006) Social protections in the Member States of the European Union: Organisation of social protection, European Commission, DG Employment and Social Affairs, 2006
  • The Local Government and Public Service Reform Initiative. Online country reports on local government and reform processes in Central and Eastern Europe
  • Mikolos, I (2000) Analysis of Self-Governing Functions: The Economic Conditions of Self-Governments in the SlovakRepublic and the Rationale for Change, World Bank, 2000

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[I] Boverket (2005), p.50

[II] Urban Audit data