Care for Traditional Folk Culture
The objective of this group of measures is to create conditions for the protection, renewal, development and presentation of traditional folk culture, including traditional crafts, so that it remains within the cultural awareness of the citizens of Slovakia and so that it is institutionally protected and made available for current and future generations.The set of measures that make up state cultural policy on care for traditional folk culture includes not only strategic and conceptual documents (e.g. the Conception of care for traditional folk culture 2007 and 2015) and the construction of institutional architecture, but also financial support and the implementation of specific programmes and projects which both increase the degree of protection for this cultural heritage and raise awareness of it.All measures are based on the principle of democratic citizenship and the status of traditional folk culture as a component of intangible cultural heritage in the territory of the Slovak Republic, with the awareness that its bearers are members of the Slovak nation, national minorities and ethnic groups, people of different beliefs, living in different environmental and economic conditions. The Conception of care for traditional folk culture to 2020 also states that this cultural diversity is a value that gives rise to important cultural benefits, satisfies aesthetic needs and creates a feeling of belonging, which contributes to an improvement in quality of life for society as a whole.
The implementation of the Conception of care for traditional folk culture since 2008 has achieved the following specific results: Initially, in 2007, an advisory body of the minister of culture was established – the Council for the safeguarding of cultural heritage and in 2010 the Intangible Cultural Heritage Centre was established; since 2010 the Slovak Republic has been building the Representative list of intangible cultural heritage and in 2015 this was joined by the List of best practices in the protection of intangible cultural heritage in Slovakia. During the period under review, the Committee for public cultural awareness activities and the Committee for cultural heritage were added to the system of advisory bodies of the government of the Slovak Republic and the Ministry of Culture as subordinate bodies of the Government Council for Culture. These advisory bodies provide a coordination and communication platform for the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic, other central state administration bodies, territorial self-government bodies, and professionals and academics working in the relevant fields. Since the school year 2009/2010 the state education programme has included a cross-cutting topic Regional education and traditional folk culture, for which supporting literature has been published.
Implementation of the conception includes the activity of the Centre for Folk Art Production (ÚĽUV), which includes technical, methodological, documentation and research activities, the operation of the Museum of Folk Art Production, the management of an on-line database of people who make folk-art products or carry on a tradition of artistic craftsmanship involving the use of natural materials (Register of makers of folk art products, Products of the Centre for Folk Art Production),
The implementation of the set of measures described under this point is financed through the approved budgets of budgetary and contributory organizations under the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic.
projects for the digitization of cultural heritage (in particular the Digital Collection of Traditional Folk Culture, the Digital museum and the Documentation and Information Centre on Roma Culture) were implemented as part of OPIS Priority Axis 2 with financial support from EU structural funds.[1]
The project PRO MONUMENTA – prevention through maintenance received financial support from the EEA financial mechanism in the amount EUR 1,151,735.
[1] Information on the amount of funds approved and spent and the amount provided by the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic in co-financing for projects supported by EU structural funds is available from the project management department.
Professionals in the field are included as members of the advisory body to the minister of culture, the Council for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage, bodies of the Government council for culture (the Committee for public cultural awareness activities and the Committee for cultural heritage) and the Expert committee for the assessment of proposals for registration in the Representative list of the intangible cultural heritage and the List of best practices in the protection of intangible cultural heritage in Slovakia, in the last of which they take part in the evaluation of individual nomination files. Every year professionals in the field take part in the evaluation process for subsidies provided by the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic.
Professionals, academics, experts and representatives of civil society organizations operating in the given area participate as lecturers, consultants and members of assessment panels in specific activities and projects of organizations under the founding competence of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic.
Tradition bearers, individual craftspeople and producers, folklore groups and ensembles are the target groups of activities carried out by organizations under the founding competence of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic which engage with issues in this area to provide a wide range of opportunities for the target groups to present their work and performances, to get training and to develop professionally.
The fulfilment of individual measures is monitored on an ongoing basis according to the arrangements and requirements applying to the specific case (e.g. public reporting for organizations under the founding competence of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic, financial and substantive evaluation of projects carried out with financial support from the grant system of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic).
Tasks under the Conception of care for traditional folk culture 2007 were evaluated and approved by the government of the Slovak Republic in January 2015. The next evaluation is planned in 2017.
The fulfilment of individual measures is monitored on an ongoing basis according to the arrangements and requirements applying to the specific case (e.g. public reporting for organizations under the founding competence of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic, financial and substantive evaluation of projects carried out with financial support from the grant system of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic).
Tasks under the Conception of care for traditional folk culture 2007 were evaluated and approved by the government of the Slovak Republic in January 2015. The next evaluation is planned in 2017.