PREPARATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES

On the area of the Euroregion, there is a sufficient number of institutions and schools which can contribute to the increase of the education level of the inhabitants according the need of this era and the preparation of the inhabitants for the entrance into the EU common market. Therefore, these institutions and schools form the strong sides of the Euroregion and a base for preparing the young generation for human resources development. These are socialised elementary and secondary schools (vocational secondary schools, apprentice schools), grammar schools, but also the branch offices of universities. The existing programs supporting health, pedagogic-psychological advisory centres, special classes, spare-time activity centres also support the possibilities for developing cross-border activities in the particular area. The tradition of active co-operation in the field of education between the Hungarian and Slovak side in he Euroregion area can be intensified again. In the previous years the lack of finances and investments caused the slowing, or in some cases the stopping of co-operation development. Now, in the interest of securing the social-economic development and integration into the European Union, the good partnership relations between schools, teachers and other educational and vocational institutions can be restored and expanded in the frame of cross-border co-operation. The relatively small distances for organised transport of labour force according to the needs of the expanded labour market of the Euroregion will contribute to the creation of new possibilities for the citizens looking for success on the labour market. The qualification structure of the labour force offered by the Slovak and Hungarian labour market of the Euroregion does not always meet the needs of the economy, which was and is going through a transformation process and which already has a new structure. The offer of labour force in the region is exceeding the needs. The unemployment rate of the productive labour force is rising and it has the highest rates in comparison with similar regions of Slovakia and Hungary.

Another common negative characteristic of the Slovak-Hungarian area is the migration of qualified labour force from the region and the lower average salaries, which causes the lack of qualified labour force in different sectors of the economy. This trend is amplified by the low education level of the inhabitants, the increasing rate of unqualified labour force (especially between the Roma population) and the objectionable technical state of some school buildings and facilities. The common effort of the Slovak-Hungarian cross-border co-operation in the area of preparation and development of human resources should be aimed at the modification of school structure and the educational system so that it could contribute to the increase of competitiveness of labour force on the internal market (inside the Euroregion, on the Slovak and Hungarian labour market) and also on the external labour market (outside the Euroregion). The weak side of the area of the Neogradiensis Euroregion is also the fact, that neither the citizens looking for employment, or a better position on the labour market, nor the employer organisations have sufficient information, there are no common databases, which would track the current situation on the labour market. That is why it is important to secure a forum for informing about the requirements on the labour market on both sides of the border, about free education capacities and about the possibilities for co-operation. The representatives of educational institutions also require this form of satisfaction of needs. The collaboration of all interested organisation in this area could slow down the migration of the young generation into the industrially more developed regions and could create new possibilities for the development of the cross-border labour market. A new information network should be created based on the current databases of existing offices. This network should be placed at the municipalities, overreach the borders and should provide a clear database according to mutual needs. The database should be regularly updated and be usable and accessible to everyone. Similar forms of co-operation could help by the employing and the increase of the education level of the rural inhabitants of the Euroregion. This kind of co-operation is also important in the field of attracting investments and investment sources into the Euroregion. Investments aimed at the increase of the education quality - increase in the vocational education level, language skills (knowledge of one or more foreign languages), development of work skills and flexibility of labour force (the inhabitants of the Euroregion), common improvement of the technical, material and organisational provision of education and human resources development - are the basic premises for the economic development of the region and the improvement of the social situation of its inhabitants.