Slovakia Loses EU Recovery Funds Due to Conflict of Interest
The European Commission deducts €1.2 million from Slovakia's Recovery Fund payments linked to irregularities in a university funding proposal.
Slovakia has become the first country to lose European Union recovery funds due to unresolved conflicts of interest related to pandemic financial support.
The European Commission has mandated the forfeiture of €1.2 million in recovery funds, originally allocated to support a regional university project, after identifying significant irregularities within the Ministry of Education.
The issue stems from a 2021 funding initiative designed to enhance collaboration between the University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius, the lead partner, and the University of Trnava.
The funding proposal was awarded by a member of the board of trustees at the University of Trnava, raising questions about the integrity of the evaluation process.
Both institutions have stated that they were unaware of any potential conflict of interest.
The conflict was unearthed following an audit conducted by the European Commission in 2022, which prompted the Commission to classify this situation as a serious irregularity.
A spokesperson confirmed that this incident marks the first reduction of EU recovery support stemming from such a circumstance.
While Slovakia had the option to recover the €1.2 million from the involved universities to retain the funds, the Ministry of Education indicated that it would not pursue this course of action, asserting that the universities bore no culpability in the matter.
Consequently, the European Commission will offset this entirety from Slovakia’s forthcoming disbursement from the Recovery Fund, an unprecedented action.
The Ministry of Education has pointed to ex-Minister Branislav Gröhling, currently leading the liberal opposition party SaS, as responsible for the lack of oversight regarding the conflict of interest.
According to the ministry, there was no established procedure at the time of the funding call that required evaluators to declare any potential conflicts of interest.
Following Gröhling's tenure, a new procedure was implemented.
The names of the evaluators who assessed the funding applications remain confidential, and the board of trustees at the University of Trnava has undergone changes since the incident.
Gröhling did not respond to inquiries regarding the issue.
The European Commission has mandated the forfeiture of €1.2 million in recovery funds, originally allocated to support a regional university project, after identifying significant irregularities within the Ministry of Education.
The issue stems from a 2021 funding initiative designed to enhance collaboration between the University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius, the lead partner, and the University of Trnava.
The funding proposal was awarded by a member of the board of trustees at the University of Trnava, raising questions about the integrity of the evaluation process.
Both institutions have stated that they were unaware of any potential conflict of interest.
The conflict was unearthed following an audit conducted by the European Commission in 2022, which prompted the Commission to classify this situation as a serious irregularity.
A spokesperson confirmed that this incident marks the first reduction of EU recovery support stemming from such a circumstance.
While Slovakia had the option to recover the €1.2 million from the involved universities to retain the funds, the Ministry of Education indicated that it would not pursue this course of action, asserting that the universities bore no culpability in the matter.
Consequently, the European Commission will offset this entirety from Slovakia’s forthcoming disbursement from the Recovery Fund, an unprecedented action.
The Ministry of Education has pointed to ex-Minister Branislav Gröhling, currently leading the liberal opposition party SaS, as responsible for the lack of oversight regarding the conflict of interest.
According to the ministry, there was no established procedure at the time of the funding call that required evaluators to declare any potential conflicts of interest.
Following Gröhling's tenure, a new procedure was implemented.
The names of the evaluators who assessed the funding applications remain confidential, and the board of trustees at the University of Trnava has undergone changes since the incident.
Gröhling did not respond to inquiries regarding the issue.
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