Tourism in Slovakia
Tourism (hereinafter referred to as "CR") is one of the most dynamically developing sectors and even in the conditions of Slovakia, it already represents an economic sector with its performance. It fulfils the following important economic functions: revenue function and multiplier effect, it is a source of value creation and an impact on GDP, it is a factor in employment, regional development and balance of payments. It employs more than 165,000 people (approximately 7% of total employment). There are currently approximately 5,000 accommodation facilities with almost 190,000 beds in Slovakia, providing almost 15 million overnight stays. The average value of direct GDP of the Czech Republic (the sum of direct gross foreign value of the Czech Republic and net taxes on Czech products) in the period 2005-2016 was around 2.81% of the GDP of the Slovak economy. During the pandemic in 2020-2021, this value fell to 1.45%.
Thanks to its natural and anthropogenic potential, CR has the opportunity to take a strategic position in the national economy and society. However, in the conditions of Slovakia, it is not a coherent sector whose inputs and outputs would be measured in the system of national accounting (as in the case of agriculture or industry), but it is a conglomerate of products and activities from many diverse sectors that participate in the activities of the CR, in particular:
– accommodation and catering services,
– travel and information agency services,
– guide services,
– recreational services (e.g. water parks, entertainment events),
– passenger transport and vehicle rental,
– sports facilities services (e.g. ski resorts, swimming pools),
– sale of tickets, tickets, souvenirs,
– travel insurance,
– ambulance service,
– exchange offices, etc.
The current reporting system does not provide a transparent valuation of business entities within the CR (this is mainly the leakage of revenues in the areas of transport, culture, retail, etc., where CR participants make up a significant share of revenues). The conditions for a comprehensive and internationally comparable quantification of the share of the economic benefits of the Czech Republic in the national economy are created by the Satellite Tourism Account, based on the global standards of the World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism- hist. UNWTO). It provides data on CR based on data from the national accounting system, UN Tourism recommendations (hist. UNWTO) and the UN Statistical Commission, especially in the area of employment generated by tourism, value added of the Czech Republic, the extent of capital investments in the Czech Republic, production, intermediate consumption, imports and net taxes. Based on these data, it is possible to quantify the share of tourism in GDP. The implementation of the satellite account is a long-term and complicated process requiring the cooperation of experts from the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic, the National Bank of the Slovak Republic, the Ministry of Finance of the Slovak Republic, the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic, the Ministry of Interior and the Chamber of Commerce of the Slovak Republic and other institutions.
Financing of support for the CR sector is insufficient, while the total annual sales in tourism and related services are estimated at EUR 6.8 billion. (2019)
For example, only active foreign CR contributes 3% to GDP, but the amount from the state budget to support the sector has not exceeded 0.07% in the recent period. The share of tourism in GDP 3 is only one of the indicators of the weight of tourism in the economy: we should not forget the positive impact of tourism in other sectors, the so-called multiplier effects of tourism in the national economy, as well as the fact that the CR is the only source of income in the case of regions that are not industrially active, together with agricultural production. If tourism is to have more weight in the country's economy in the future, it will be necessary to remember to promote its interests and objectives more strongly in all sectoral policies.
Although the private sector has a decisive role in the development of CR, the role of the public sector is to formulate a strategy for its development and define tools to ensure it. That is why the essence of the state's policy in tourism and the necessity of its new orientation are important. At present, the following institutions and organizations are the main bearers of decision-making processes in the creation of the state tourism policy:
- Government of the Slovak Republic,
- Ministry of Tourism and Sport of the Slovak Republic – Tourism Section,
- self-governing regions – departments for tourism,
- regional and regional tourism organizations.
In supporting tourism in the current programming period, the Government of the Slovak Republic has focused on increasing the number of tourists and the length of their stay in Slovakia through effective destination management through regional tourism organizations and active marketing presentation of the country.
The motivation for associating CR entities into regional and regional CR organizations is the provision of subsidies from the budget chapter of the Ministry of Tourism and Sport of the Slovak Republic, which supports the main activities of regional tourism organizations through a subsidy mechanism in accordance with Section 29 (10) of Act 91/2010 Coll. on the Promotion of Tourism, which establishes 9 eligible activities. The condition is registration at the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Slovak Republic and there is no legal entitlement to the subsidy. The application, project, activity plan and budget forms are modified by the decree. The Tourism Section of the MCR and Š SR also provides legislative, strategic and conceptual activities, promotes stimulation measures of the tourism business environment, collects and evaluates statistical data in the field of banking and accommodation statistics, active foreign and domestic tourism, operates the CR information system – the national portal Slovakia.travel – and presents Slovakia as a CR destination at exhibitions, fairs, workshops, campaigns and press conferences.
The regionalization of tourism in the Slovak Republic divides the Slovak Republic into 21 tourism regions, which do not correspond to the eight administrative regions. Self-governing regions have in their organisational structures a department that also ensures tourism issues in accordance with Act No. 302/2001 Coll. on Self-Government of Higher Territorial Units and its provisions § 4 (1) letter m) on the creation of conditions for the development of tourism and coordination of this development and § 5 on international cooperation, from Act No. 461/2001 Coll. on the transfer of certain competences from state administration bodies to municipalities and higher territorial units, Act No. 503/2001 Coll. on the Support of Regional Development, as amended, and Act No. 91/2010 Coll. on the Support of Tourism, as amended. In April 2019, the Ministry of Regional Development and the Sports of the Slovak Republic launched regular consultations with representatives of the Regional Self-Governing Regions with regard to better information, cooperation and coordination of activities to support tourism.
Tourism organizations (8 regional, 39 regional) are associations of self-governing and business entities in the field of tourism services, which form a common platform for the development of tourism in the destination. Every CR entity located within the territorial competence of the OCR has the right to become its member. The use of subsidies is intended to help create a comprehensive product in the regions and thus increase traffic.
