- 2023Design
- 2024Approved/Agreed
Background
The 2017 Learning Slovakia strategy commissioned by the education ministry but not submitted for approval to the government opened the door for the discussion on implementing individual learning accounts (ILAs) in the form of virtual wallets for all adults with a guaranteed annual income of EUR 200 from the State budget. Subsequently, the 2018 National programme for the development of education (NPDE) adopted by the government envisaged piloting ILAs, however, pandemic constraints harmed the implementation. The 2021 Lifelong learning and counselling strategy for 2021-30 (LLCS 2030) adopted by the government paved the way for the introduction of ILAs again.
Objectives
Implementing ILAs backed by the new legislation and piloted using funds from European sources as a new instrument in support of adult learning by:
- increasing access to education and learning;
- reducing the costs of learning to inhabitants; and
- securing quality of adult education funded by ILAs via quality check of providers.
Description
Reflecting the LLCS 2030 recommendations the State Institute of Vocational Education prepared a comparative study focusing on new European policies, ILAs and microcredentials. The education ministry decided to cover ILAs and some segments of lifelong learning by new legislation and to pilot implementing ILAs making use of funding from Programme Slovakia 2021-27.
The draft Act on adult education, which introduces ILAs as an instrument easing access of adults to education and training was discussed by stakeholders as well as two national projects (large systemic projects funded by EU sources via Programme Slovakia 2021-27) envisaged to support its piloting:
- System of individual learning accounts - part I: an electronic platform for individual learning accounts (Elektronická platforma individuálnych vzdelávacích úctov, EPIVU platform), with an allocation of EUR 2.3 million from Programme Slovakia 2021-27 (ERDF);
- Supporting the creation and introduction of individual learning accounts with an estimated allocation of about EUR 12.75 million from Programme Slovakia 2021-27 (ESF+).
The parliament adopted the Act on adult education (292/2024) on 30 October 2024, introducing ILAs as an instrument to support the provision of adult education. Piloting ILAs for EUR 200 is envisaged.
In the submission report to the draft law, the education ministry presented ILAs as a 'tool for personalised support in a dult education and a means to strengthen the motivation of adults to participate in education'. Using ILAs is interlinked with a new quality assurance tool assessing 'the relevance of education provided by educational institutions in relation to labour market needs'. Education providers must be certified by the education ministry, while the 'relevance of the content and quality of education will be assessed by the Sector Councils Alliance (SCA) with the aim of 'sustaining employment in the face of the impacts of digitalisation, automation and supporting the green economy'.
The law distinguishes two categories of ILAs:
Individual education account, which allows, based on personal needs, to cover the costs of
- training in basic skills, key competencies or in the field of interest-based education;
- training in digital skills or green skills; or
- accessing career guidance services for adults.
Individual education account, which allows, based on the needs of the labour market, to cover the costs of
- acquiring, enhancing or expanding qualifications;
- accessing career guidance services for adults; or
- verifying learning outcomes.
For providers offering education under the two categories of ILAs, the following conditions apply:
The first category of ILAs:
- For education under (a) (training in basic skills, key competencies or in the field of interest-based education), the provider must be a certified institution
- For education under (b) (training in digital skills or green skills) the provider must also have approval from the SCA and be listed in the specialised register managed by the SCA.
The second category of ILAs:
For education under (a) (acquiring, enhancing or expanding qualifications) the provider must be a certified institution. If the employer is co-financing these costs, the consent of the employer is also required.
Career guidance services:
ILAs can be used to pay for career guidance services only when provided by counsellors registered in the register of career guidance providers for adults.
The SCA controls procedures for verifying educational outcomes, testing or recognising assessment portfolios, and selecting national guarantors and authorised experts, which are crucial for quality assurance concerning processes resulting in awarding a qualification to persons without a formal qualification.
The project EPIVU, approved on 1 July 2024, aims to develop an electronic platform, with an envisaged launch in January 2025. It is composed of three modules:
- Learner module: provides a course search database, registration and communication functions to connect learners with selected providers;
- Provider module: offers information about providers and details of offered courses;
- Administrator module: manages documentation, including the status of individual accounts (showing the balance of the annual EUR 200 allocation). It also facilitates the management of trainee satisfaction feedback and collected statistics as well as the management of registers set by the law: Certified institutions, Accredited programmes, Non-accredited programmes, Graduates of accredited programmes, Graduates of non-accredited programmes. Registers in support of procedures of validation of non-formal and informal learning, registers of National guarantors, Authorised institutions, Authorised specialists, and Graduates awarded a professional qualification through recognition of learning outcomes, are also included.
The subsequent project aimed at both supporting adult education and testing the functionality of the EPIVU platform is under discussion with an expected launch in 2025.
Bodies responsible
- Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth
Target groups
Learners
- Adult learners
Thematic categories
Governance of VET and lifelong learning
This thematic category looks at existing legal frameworks providing for strategic, operational – including quality assurance – and financing arrangements for VET and lifelong learning (LLL). It examines how VET and LLL-related policies are placed in broad national socioeconomic contexts and coordinate with other strategies and policies, such as economic, social and employment, growth and innovation, recovery and resilience.
This thematic category covers partnerships and collaboration networks of VET stakeholders – especially the social partners – to shape and implement VET in a country, including looking at how their roles and responsibilities for VET at national, regional and local levels are shared and distributed, ensuring an appropriate degree of autonomy for VET providers to adapt their offer.
The thematic category also includes efforts to create national, regional and sectoral skills intelligence systems (skills anticipation and graduate tracking) and using skills intelligence for making decisions about VET and LLL on quality, inclusiveness and flexibility.
This thematic sub-category refers to further development of national quality assurance (QA) systems for IVET and CVET, for all learning environments (school-based provision and work-based learning, including apprenticeships) and all learning types (digital, face-to-face or blended), delivered by both public and private providers. These systems are underpinned by the EQAVET quality criteria and by indicative descriptors applied both at system and provider levels, as defined in Annex II of the VET Recommendation. The sub-category concerns creating and improving external and self-evaluation of VET providers, and establishing criteria of QA, accreditation of providers and programmes. It also covers the activities of Quality assurance national reference points for VET on implementing and further developing the EQAVET framework, including the implementation of peer reviews at VET system level.
Transparency and portability of VET skills and qualifications
European principles and tools, such as EQF, ESCO, ECTS, Europass and ECVET, provide a strong basis for transparency and portability of national and sectoral qualifications across Europe, including the issuing of digital diplomas and certificates.
This thematic category looks at how individuals are supported in transferring, accumulating, and validating skills and competences acquired in formal, non-formal and informal settings – including learning on the job – and in having their learning recognised towards a qualification at any point of their lives. This is only possible if qualifications are transparent and comparable and are part of comprehensive national qualifications frameworks. Availability of qualifications smaller than full and acquirable in shorter periods of time is necessary; some countries have recently worked on developing partial qualifications, microcredentials, etc.
This thematic sub-category refers to the development and implementation of qualifications that are smaller than full qualifications (alternative credentials) or are acquired in a shorter learning experience. It includes microcredentials, partial qualifications, units of learning outcomes (ECVET principle), digital badges, etc. These are owned by learners and can be combined or not to get a full qualification.
Supporting lifelong learning culture and increasing participation
Lifelong learning refers to all learning (formal, non-formal or informal) taking place at all stages in life and resulting in an improvement or update in knowledge, skills, competences and attitudes or in participation in society from a personal, civic, cultural, social or employment-related perspective (Erasmus+, Glossary of terms, https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/programme-guide/part-d/glossary-common-terms). A systemic approach to CVET is crucial to ensure adaptability to evolving demands.
This broad thematic category looks at ways of creating opportunities and ensuring access to re-skilling and upskilling pathways, allowing individuals to progress smoothly in their learning throughout their lives with better permeability between general and vocational education and training, and better integration and compatibility between initial and continuing VET and with higher education. Individuals should be supported in acquiring and updating their skills and competences and navigating easily through education and training systems. Strategies and campaigns that promote VET and LLL as an attractive and high-quality pathway, providing quality lifelong guidance and tailored support to design learning and career paths, and various incentives (financial and non-financial) to attract and support participation in VET and LLL fall into this thematic category as well.
This thematic category also includes many initiatives on making VET inclusive and ensuring equal education and training opportunities for various groups of learners, regardless of their personal and economic background and place of residence – especially those at risk of disadvantage or exclusion, such as persons with disabilities, the low-skilled and low-qualified, minorities, migrants, refugees and others.
This thematic sub-category refers to initiatives that promote VET and lifelong learning implemented at any level and by any stakeholder. It also covers measures to ensure and broaden access to information about VET to various target groups, including targeted information and promotional campaigns (e.g. for parents, adult learners, vulnerable groups). Among others, it includes national skill competitions and fairs organised to attract learners to VET.
This thematic sub-category refers to ensuring smooth transitions (permeability) of learners within the entire education and training system, horizontally and vertically. It includes measures and policies allowing learners easily or by meeting certain conditions to move from general education programmes to VET and vice versa; to increase qualification levels in their vocation through the possibility of attending vocational programmes at higher levels, including professional degrees in higher education. It also covers opening up learning progression by introducing flexible pathways that are based on the validation and recognition of the outcomes of non-formal and informal learning.
This thematic sub-category refers to all kinds of incentives that encourage learners to take part in VET and lifelong learning; VET providers to improve, broaden and update their offer; companies to provide places for apprenticeship and work-based learning, and to stimulate and support learning of their employees. It also includes measures addressing specific challenges of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) willing to create work-based learning opportunities in different sectors. Incentives can be financial (e.g. grants, allowances, tax incentives, levy/grant mechanisms, vouchers, training credits, individual learning accounts) and non-financial (e.g. information/advice on funding opportunities, technical support, mentoring).
This thematic sub-category refers to providing the possibility for individuals who are already in the labour market/in employment to reskill and/or acquire higher levels of skills, and to ensuring targeted information resources on the benefits of CVET and lifelong learning. It also covers the availability of CVET programmes adaptable to labour market, sectoral or individual up- and reskilling needs. The sub-category includes working with respective stakeholders to develop digital learning solutions supporting access to CVET opportunities and awarding CVET credentials and certificates.
This thematic sub-category refers to providing high-quality lifelong learning and career guidance services, including making full use of Europass and other digital services and resources.
This thematic sub-category refers to making VET pathways and programmes inclusive and accessible for all. It concerns measures and targeted actions to increase access and participation in VET and lifelong learning for learners from all vulnerable groups, and to support their school/training-to-work transitions. It includes measures to prevent early leaving from education and training. The thematic sub-category covers measures promoting gender balance in traditionally ‘male’ and ‘female’ professions and addressing gender-related and other stereotypes. The vulnerable groups are, but not limited to: persons with disabilities; the low-qualified/-skilled; minorities; persons of migrant background, including refugees; people with fewer opportunities due to their geographical location and/or their socioeconomically disadvantaged circumstances.
European priorities in VET
VET Recommendation
- VET agile in adapting to labour market challenges
- Flexibility and progression opportunities at the core of VET
- VET as a driver for innovation and growth preparing for digital and green transitions and occupations in high demand
- VET as an attractive choice based on modern and digitalised provision of training and skills
- VET promoting equality of opportunities
- VET underpinned by a culture of quality assurance
Osnabrück Declaration
- Establishing a new lifelong learning culture - relevance of continuing VET and digitalisation
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Individual learning accounts: Slovakia. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/47920