38 castle ruins have been reconstructed on the territory of the Slovák Republic so far. Castles in Kapušany, Lietava or Revište were being renovated as part of the common project between the Labour and Culture Ministries in support of the unemployed. In the past 8 years, over 4200 people have found a job thanks to participating in the project "Renovating cultural heritage with the help of the unemployed".
"It's very helpful to receive subsidies for material, a co-ordinator for the works and salaries for the workers," says Ratibor Mazúr from the Sáve the Revište Castle civil association. The Labour Ministry pays for two positions. Since 2011, it has allocated 19 million EUR. "Our aim is not to create permanent positions but to provide unemployed people suitable for this kind of work and thus secure possible employment for them in the future thanks to having participated in this project," explained Labour Minister Ján Richter. "We have increased the money allocated by the Culture Ministry from €6 million to €12 million," added Culture Minister Ľubica Laššáková. As she further stated, their aim is to renovate as many ruins as possible.
The majority of the renovated castles is open to public despite the ongoing works. "The goal is to show the visitors a live version of the sightseeings and how helpful such a recontruction is. We want the tourists on the site," concludes Peter Herceg from the Zachranme hrady NGO.
