UNESCO in Slovakia

Slovakia is active in all five programme areas of UNESCO: Education, Natural Sciences, Social and Human Sciences, Culture, and Information and Communication. Slovak Commission for UNESCO contributes to the implementation of these programmes on national level and thus promotes the UNESCO's ideals throughout the country.

UNESCO's contribution is also visible thanks to the UNESCO brand itself, attributed to cultural monuments, educational and scientific institutions, cities or natural treasures. This UNESCO brand promotes international cooperation and development and guarantees value for the country and the region. In addition to the famous World Heritage sites and intangible cultural heritage, the brand is visible on biosphere reserves, geoparks, elementary and secondary schools, university chairs or valuable historical documents. UNESCO brand can also be claimed by cities that promote lifelong learning or creative industries.

In Slovakia we have four UNESCO Chairs, twenty-five UNESCO associated schools, eight World Heritage sites (6 cultural and 2 natural), nine elements of intangible cultural heritage of humanity, four biosphere reserves, one geopark, one entry in the Memory of the World Register, one UNESCO creative city and UNESCO Learning City.

All of these UNESCO designations bring considerable benefits for Slovakia, even if sometimes only in a subtle way. UNESCO’s expertise is reflected in school curricula and in national and local policies, especially in relation to the conservation of nature and the promotion of culture. Thanks to UNESCO and its global leadership in science, Slovakia is active in many international scientific committees, notably the Man and Biosphere Programme (MAB), the Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP), or the Management of Social Transformation Programme (MOST). Important topics also include bioethics and artificial intelligence, or even the Information for All Programme (IFAP).  The main objectives of the Slovak Commission for UNESCO are popularization of science and cooperation with the young generation. 

Slovak Commission for UNESCO’s cross-cutting priority is to promote gender equality in practice, either through strong representation of women in the various national committees and their leadership, or through the nomination of women as Slovak experts and scientists to numerous international fora.

Thanks to the collaboration of specialists and politicians from 193 countries of the world, UNESCO offers an excellent forum for discussion and cooperation in the framework of the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. In particular, UNESCO is the global coordinator of SDG 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all).