Survey: Ukrainians in Slovakia Feel Mostly Accepted

Bratislava, February 23 (TASR) - People from Ukraine mostly feel accepted in Slovakia and interested in the integration into society, with more than two-thirds of respondents doing paid work and children being integrated in Slovak schools, although the language barrier still remains a challenge, it follows from latest survey conducted by the Slovak Academy of Science (SAV). "More than two-thirds of respondents (67 percent) stated that currently they do paid work. This amounts to a higher share of economic activity than with adult Slovaks, which can be attributed mostly to lower share of pensioners among the Ukrainian population in Slovakia," said Miloslav Bahna of the SAV's Sociological Institute. According to Bahna, more than two-thirds of refugees found jobs corresponding to their qualifications acquired in Ukraine. People from Ukraine are interested in the integration into Slovak society (67.8 percent of respondents would like to engage in closer contact with the Slovaks) and feel mostly accepted (57.7 percent). Despite this, almost a quarter of them (23.3 percent) stated that they have encountered bad treatment over their origin. The survey was conducted on a sample of 503 respondents aged 18-81, who came to live in Slovakia after the Russian aggression in Ukraine. mf