Main Executive and Legislative Bodies

National level

The main legislative body is the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia. It is composed of ninety deputies, including one representative of the Hungarian and one of the Italian minority. The deputies are elected for a four-year term. National Assembly has a number of working bodies that focus on specific policy areas. One of those bodies is the 17-member Committee on Education, Science, Sports and Youth.

A complementary body, the upper chamber, is the National Council of the Republic of Slovenia which consists of 40 members serving five-year terms. They represent different interest groups; 22 members are representatives of local interests and 18 are representatives of functional interests. The latter include universities, higher education institutions, researchers, culture, and sports. The National Council may propose laws to the National Assembly, or demand a review of decisions on legislation prior to its promulgation (suspense veto).

The President of the Republic of Slovenia represents the Republic of Slovenia and is the commander-in-chief of its armed forces. Among other powers, the President calls the legislative elections and promulgates laws. The President is elected for a five-year term (limited to two in a row) in direct, general elections by secret ballot.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia is the highest body of the state administration and Slovenia’s representative in the EU. It passes regulations and adopts legal, political, economic, financial, organisational, and similar measures for regulating areas within the state's jurisdiction. It proposes laws, the state budget, national programmes and other acts that determine political directions for individual areas and are adopted by the National Assembly.

The Government is led by the Prime Minister. Every government coalition decides on the number of ministries and, accordingly, ministers, based on its needs and political goals.

As of late 2020, there are 14 ministries, each led and represented by a minister who also issues regulations and other decrees and adopts decisions related to the ministry’s remit.

The Government led by Janez Janša of Slovenian Democratic Party was confirmed on 13 March 2020. Other parties in the governing coalition are: the Modern Centre Party, New Slovenia, and the Democratic Party of Pensioners.

Ministry of Education, Science and Sport

The Ministry of Education, Science and Sport is responsible for, among other things:

• education and social protection of children, youth and adults in kindergardens, primary and upper-secondary schools, student residence halls, music schools, secondary schools and institutions or units for adult aducation;
• education of Italian and Hungarian national community members and Roma, and of Slovenian minority members in Italy, Austria and Hungary;
• supplementary classes of Slovenian language and culture for Slovenian emigrants;
• sports education and recreational sports; preventative and corrective sports activities, and elite sports;
• preparing systemic and other solutions;
• preparing the national programme and public service programme;
• formulating standards for public service financing;
• setting up the real estate balance sheet and preparing the investment programme and maintenance;
• setting up an IT system for education and sports;
• setting up human resources overviews and educating pedagogical, andragogical and other specialized staff and promotions to titles;
• planning, directing and financing higher education activities, student residences and higher education libraries;
• formulating the premises and goals of higher education policy;
• preparing the national programme for higher education;
• approving the call for enrollement and placement into study programmes;
• analysing social and economic issues of the student population.

The Ministry has the following organisational units:

• Minister’s Office
• Public Relations Office
• Investments Directorate
• Preschool and Basic Education Directorate
• Upper Secondary, Higher Vocational and Adult Education Directorate
• Sport Directorate
• Education Development and Quality Office
• UNESCO Office
• Service for the Implementation of Cohesion Policy
• International Cooperation and European Affairs Service
• Secretariat
• Internal controller office

Two additional bodies operate within the Ministry:

• Inspectorate of the Republic of Slovenia for Education and Sport
• Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Youth

Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities

The Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities also holds relevant responsibilities, such as:

• the status and the comprehensive social protection of disabled persons, youths, children and families;
• scholarships and vocational training; 
• family and demographic policy;
• social assistance for deprived individuals, families and population groups;
• training children with development disorders and protection of persons who are unable to take care of themselves.

Local self-government

Slovenia has a long tradition of regionalism and local self-government. The basic self-governing local community is a municipality. There are 212 municipalities in Slovenia, of which 11 are cities. The constitutional changes of June 2006 introduced provinces as another form of local self-government, but provinces have so far not been established.

The authorities of a municipality comprise a mayor, a municipal council and a supervisory committee.

• The municipal council is the highest decision-making body. Its members are elected locally for a period of four years.
• The mayor, a directly elected official with a four-year mandate, presides over the municipal or city council, represents the municipality and acts on its behalf.
• The supervisory committee oversees municipal property and public expenditure.

Municipalities are tasked with ensuring suitable conditions for pre-school education programmes, compulsory basic education, education for children with special needs, adult education and training, and music schools.