MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Monday, 1 September 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Sunday, 31 August): BRATISLAVA - The new school year will be a year of change for many: for new first-graders, secondary school leavers, as well as for the whole education sector, Education, Research, Development and Youth Minister Tomas Drucker (Voice-SD) said in a special speech he delivered on Sunday evening on the public-service STVR on the occasion of the beginning of the 2025/2026 school year, noting that the future of Slovakia is sitting in school desks. "The education sector has been waiting for a real step forwards for two decades. Today I can finally say that we have prepared improvements that have only been talked about for years. We are introducing changes thoughtfully and gradually so that everyone can handle them - from nursery schools to universities," noted the minister. According to Drucker, individual steps fit to each other and connect what has been separated so far. "We're building on what has proven well and improving what was weak," he said. Drucker pointed to the change in the way of teaching starting this school year in additional hundreds of primary schools. According to the minister, children will gain more life skills and less cramming. They will solve practical tasks, learn to cooperate and think for themselves in order to succeed in life, not only in tests. Parents will have more insight into what their children are learning and why, said the minister. The change also concerns teachers. According to the minister, it will bring less red tape and more space for teaching. All school employees will also see their pays increased as of 1 September and January. "I know they would deserve more, but this is a step in the right direction. And even more important is that they feel respect and trust, as education won't move anywhere without them," added Drucker. Drucker stated, the most powerful weapon of our nation is not the army, but education. That's why schools are undergoing modernisation, with the largest-ever digitalisation being launched. At the same time, no country will survive if it gives up on its children, stated the minister, adding that that's why they also think of the smallest ones. He noted that access to a nursery school can decide the future of a child. He thinks that a nursery and primary school close to home must be a certainty for every child. Parents can choose a different path, but this certainty must be available to everyone, stated the minister. The minister thanked teachers for their patience and devotion and parents for their trust and support. He wished children and students a year full of discoveries, friendships and good ideas. "Slovakia will be as strong as our children are wise and courageous. Our task is to help them to be wise and courageous, so that they aren't afraid of new challenges and are able to handle them," added Drucker in his speech. BRATISLAVA - Slovak exporters are increasingly seeking markets for their products outside the European Union (EU), which is related to the persisting global uncertainty marked by military conflicts, trade barriers and an economic recession in the EU, according to a survey carried out by Eximbanka on a sample of 112 respondents in 2024. Interest is growing especially in Ukraine, on 19 percent, followed by sub-Saharan Africa on 16 percent, and the Western Balkans, in particular Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, on 15 percent. Ukraine is currently among the priority markets in which Slovak companies are most interested due to its great need for renewal, especially in the field of energy infrastructure and other strategic sectors. However, companies are also attracted by countries in South and Southeast Asia (13 percent) and Latin America (9 percent). However, when expanding to these countries, they encounter a lack of contacts, financial security and unfamiliarity with the given territories. The least interesting regions for Slovak companies are the Near and Middle East, including North Africa (5 percent), and the Caucasus and Central Asia region (3 percent). "When trying to succeed on less traditional foreign markets, companies face several challenges. The most frequently cited obstacle (24 percent of respondents) is the problem of identifying customers and establishing local contacts. Economic diplomacy plays an extremely important role here, where knowledge of the local environment and the creation of trustworthy contacts are among the decisive factors in building diplomatic and economic relations," specified Eximbanka. The survey further showed that 72 percent of exporters are able to enter developing markets without the need to form trade partnerships. However, another 21 percent view cooperation as essential and use subcontracting, consortia or acquisitions. Partnerships help them to better manage risks, gain local knowledge and open up access to challenging markets that are characterised by political or economic instability. "Slovak exporters have the knowledge and capacity to succeed outside traditional markets. However, this requires, in addition to the quality of their supplies, sufficient preparations and reliable partners, especially on markets with a higher level of risk,” added Eximbanka general director Rastislav Podhorec. BRATISLAVA - Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) director Pavol Gaspar posted on a social network on Sunday that the car he crashed in on Saturday (30 August) has been registered to a company where he was an authorised representative and partner before holding public office and that he dully declared his stake in this company in his property declaration. Gaspar rejected statements made by the opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party earlier on Sunday. He said that he bought the car he was driving more than five years ago for money he earned. "It cost less than, for example, a new Skoda Superb," ​​he noted on a social network. PS, as well as other opposition parties, have called on Gaspar to resign. They claim that the SIS director failed to declare the car he crashed in his property declaration and that he isn't qualified for the post and drives at odds with traffic regulations. Gaspar was involved in a traffic accident, in which two passenger cars collided in Nitra on Saturday. A minor suffered minor injuries in the accident. Both participants in the traffic accident underwent a breathalyser test for alcohol with a negative result. The police are dealing with the accident. BRATISLAVA - The opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party on Sunday called on Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) director Pavol Gaspar to resign, with the opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) and 'Slovakia' parties joining the call. PS sees several reasons for Gaspar to resign as SIS head, including suspicion of a violation of a duty set by law in connection with Saturday's (August 30) traffic accident in Nitra, in which he was involved, reads the statement by PS leader Michal Simecka, provided to TASR by Samuel Chrtan of the party's media department. According to PS, Gaspar had no qualifications for this post and became the SIS director only as a "patch" for his father, to protect the interests of the "family clan". "Moreover, a suspicion occurred yesterday that he failed to fulfil his legal duty - the sports car with which he crashed and injured a minor wasn't included in his property declaration. The toughest criteria must apply to the SIS director. Mr. Gaspar doesn't meet them by any chance," stated Simecka. At the same time, PS announced it will file a motion to the parliamentary committee for the conflict of interests to examine whether Gaspar acted correctly and lawfully in this matter. In addition, it will ask vice-chair of the committee for the supervision of SIS Peter Suca (Smer-SD) to include the issue of the traffic accident as the first and main point on the agenda of its session. The committee is due to hold a session on September 17, MP Zuzana Stevulova (PS) told a news conference on Sunday. SaS leader Branislav Groehling claims that Gaspar has endangered other road traffic participants by driving at odds with the traffic rules. According to Groehling, his father and colleagues immediately came to help him after the accident in Nitra, downplaying the accident and attacking the opposition. "Pavol Gaspar is a symbol of the arrogance of power, nepotism and incompetence. This man should never have been the SIS head," stated the SaS leader, urging him to resign. 'Slovakia' party, For the People and Christian Union (KU) caucus head Michal Sipos reacted to the accident as well. "A person who drives at high speed in flip-flops in a village, in a technically unfit vehicle that he even failed to include in his property declaration, causes a traffic accident and injures a minor child while overtaking across the solid line, has no place at SIS's helm," stressed Sipos. The SIS chief was involved in a traffic accident, in which two passenger cars collided in Nitra on Saturday (30 August). A minor suffered minor injuries in the accident, subsequently receiving treatment at a hospital. Both participants in the traffic accident underwent a breathalyser test for alcohol with a negative result. Gaspar on social network wrote that the police patrol that was called to the scene handled the whole situation in a highly professional manner. mf