MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Sunday, December 8, 2024 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Saturday, December 7): BRATISLAVA - The people of Slovakia are most troubled by three problems, namely inflation, the economic situation and government debt, with these three followed by the situation in health care, CSOB analyst Marek Gabris has stated in a commentary on the latest Eurobarometer survey, published earlier this week. He specified that growing prices and the cost of living is the biggest problem for a significant portion of population - 47 percent. This is much higher than for any other problem. In second place is the economic situation, which was identified as one of the most important problems by 22 percent of the respondents. The government debt came third on 18 percent, closely followed by the situation in health care on 17 percent. "The fact that inflation is the biggest problem can also be seen by comparing how we perceive it at home and the EU average. While up to 47 percent of the respondents identified it as a problem in Slovakia, the EU average was 33 percent. According to recently published Eurostat data, Slovakia had the fifth-highest inflation in the eurozone in November," explained Gabris. According to the analyst, Slovaks perceive price growth sensitively partly because food makes up about a quarter of the consumer basket. In the view of consumers, food prices are still moving in the wrong direction. According to figures for November, food prices (including alcohol and tobacco) went up by 4.7 percent year-on-year (y-o-y). Although this was a slower pace than the 5 percent in October, it definitely wasn't reflected in price tags, he said. Gabris ascribed the inflation rate to the recently approved tax package, the growth in regulated prices and rising food prices. The FAO global food prices index hit its highest level since April 2023 in October. This means only a small chance that the direction will be reversed in the near future, said the analyst. BRATISLAVA - The Association for Artificial Intelligence in Slovakia (ASAI), in cooperation with selected Slovak universities and the University Student Council, is launching a survey to obtain an overview of the current state of teaching and implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, TASR has learnt from Miroslava Sachova, a member of the ASAI Board of Directors. The aim is to identify the challenges faced by students and educators, and to propose opportunities for further developing this field. "Artificial intelligence is slowly making its way into schools. I don't think that most teachers are surprised any more by what it's capable of doing. However, in schools and universities we are still learning how to approach AI - where it can be a useful tool, and where, on the contrary, we are walking on thin ice, either in terms of ethics or by neglecting to think for ourselves. This survey will help us to understand what stage of technology adoption individual universities have reached," explained Peter Murar, vice dean for development and public relations at the University of St. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava. Sachova emphasised that AI makes it possible to identify opportunities to improve administration, to address barriers such as a lack of resources or experts and to provide strategic planning for further development. It also helps universities to respond effectively to ethical challenges related to data protection and digital inclusion, ensuring that AI delivers equal opportunities for all students and staff. The association believes that the results of the survey will provide valuable information for developing strategies to support AI education in Slovakia. BRATISLAVA - In Slovakia, 94 percent of students aged 15-29 were not engaged in the labour market last year, meaning that, on average, only 6 percent of Slovak students were working while studying, which is four times lower than the European Union (EU) average, according to Slovenska sporitelna bank analyst Marian Kocis. Last year, 26 percent of Europeans aged 15-29 were employed while studying. Around 71 percent stayed away from the labour market, while 3 percent were actively looking for work. "Young people are most likely to work while studying in the Netherlands, Iceland, Denmark, Switzerland and Norway. More than 60 percent of students are either working or actively seeking employment while studying. In our country the proportion is ten times less, which ultimately means less work intensity, less experience and fewer opportunities to face problems that require creative solutions," said Kocis. He added that in the 20 to 24 age group the number of women away from the labour market is higher than men, both among those studying and those not doing so. The difference is more pronounced among those not in education, at 16.8 percent of women and 6.8 percent of men. The analyst pointed out that maternity and parental leave in Slovakia also affect young people on the labour market. This contributes towards a gender pay gap of 18 percent, which is significantly higher than the EU average of 13 percent. Another problem, according to the analyst, is the low level of economic activity, which prevents young people from becoming financially independent and leaving their parents' home at an earlier age. On average, young people in Slovakia leave the parental home at 31. BRATISLAVA - The Central Military Hospital in Ruzomberok (Zilina region) has become the best state university and faculty hospital of the year for the fifth time, while Agel Hospital in Kosice-Saca has also successfully defended its position as the best general hospital, according to the results of the tenth annual evaluation of hospitals by the Institute for Economic and Social Reforms (INEKO) based on comparing data primarily between 2020-2023. "Increasing transparency by publishing relevant information on the quality and efficiency of the health care provided is, in our opinion, one of the key prerequisites for the public to be better informed, to make more informed decisions and to create more effective pressure on improving public services, which then motivates health-care institutions to constantly improve. The aim is for patients to receive the best care for the best price in line with the idea and concept of value for money," stated INEKO head Dusan Zachar. F.D. Roosevelt Faculty Hospital in Banska Bystrica maintained second place in the category of state university and faculty hospitals, while Martin University Hospital (Zilina region) was third. As for general hospitals, Topolcany Hospital (Nitra region) came in second, while third place went to Poprad Hospital (Presov region). The assessment also showed that the coronavirus pandemic has negatively affected the quality and performance of Slovak hospitals, especially in 2020 and 2021. "We can state that the deterioration of indicators caused by the pandemic has been halted and reversed in the year before last and last year. There's been a gradual improvement, but we are still not reaching pre-pandemic levels," pointed out Zachar. mf