The European Commission has adopted a package for the European Semester on Wednesday including three specific recommendations for Slovakia:
1. To reduce the growth of net primary spending to 4.1% in 2019 and increase cost-efficiency in health care and develop a strategy for health personnel;
2. To improve the activation measures for disadvantaged groups and improve the quality and inclusion of education, increase the participation of Roma children in education from early childhood;
3. To strengthen the use of quality criteria in public procurement, to tackle corruption at the police and prosecution level, to improve the efficiency of the justice system, to reduce fragmentation in public sector science and research, and to foster innovation in the private sector
The recommendations reflect the challenges identified by the European Commission in its Country Report published in March 2018 as well as the measures and analyses submitted by Slovakia in the National Reform Program. Slovakia's reform priorities are relatively stable, reflecting the consistency of specific recommendations. Compared to the previous year, there have been only slight changes - an emphasis on a strategy for health personnel, the addition of science and research, and greater emphasis on the role of the police and prosecutors in the fight against corruption.
