THE CABINET did not use a single crown from this year's Sk150 million (€3.6 million) budget earmarked for the support of industrial parks.
"We do have the money, but there is no one to whom we could provide it in line with the existing laws. Applicants failed to submit their requests, which must include all the necessary elements, and the towns and villages are totally unprepared," said Economy Minister Pavol Rusko at a press conference on October 20.
As an example, he cited "completely unprepared" officials at a meeting with the minister from the southern Slovak town of Lučenec.
Currently there are five operating industrial parks in Slovakia and their combined area is 150 hectares. In comparison, the neighbouring Czech Republic has 51 industrial zones with a total area of 1,700 hectares of land ready for investors.
The Economy Ministry currently registers seven applications for industrial parks.
