The Slovak Ministry of Education has been given its new head after the Slovak National Party (SNS) Chairman Andrej Danko nominated Martina Lubyová as a Slovakia´s new Education Minister. In the past, she led the Prognostic Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, and less than two years ago she initiated its merger with other institutes into the Centre of Social and Psychological Sciences, in which she has been a deputy president until now.

She was appointed as a new Education Minister on 13 September after Peter Plavcan of the coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) was asked to quit by the Prime Minister Robert Fico (see ACA Newsletter – Education Europe, August 2017). The call to resign has come after a scandal involving the distribution of EU funds. The Ministry of Education has reportedly selected several private companies with no history in research or innovation as recipients of EU subsidies.

Martina Lubyová has therefore assured quick action in dealing with the EU funds issue. Last week, travelling to Brussels to meet with the EU officials, she has scrapped the previous call for EU proposals and has pledged to introduce new criteria governing the assessments of the EU funded projects.