European recovery and resilience funding – Together towards the goal: sustainable cultural heritage

28. 5. 2026

• Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Recovery and Resilience
• Ministry of Culture

Many of the measures introduced in Slovenia under the Recovery and Resilience Plan, implemented with the support of EU funds under the Recovery and Resilience Facility - NextGenerationEU, have already been successfully completed or will be by August 2026. The majority of activities under the investment project for the sustainable restoration and revitalisation of cultural heritage have now been completed.

There are currently 31,095 heritage units entered in the Register of Immovable Cultural Heritage, maintained by the Ministry of Culture, of which 8,484 have been declared cultural monuments of national or local importance.

Preserved cultural heritage significantly contributes to the country's visibility and thereby to the development of tourism, which was among the most severely affected economic sectors during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The state and local communities are working to preserve the country's rich cultural heritage also with the help of European funds. Within the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), the Ministry of Culture, together with municipalities, is implementing an investment in the sustainable restoration and revitalisation of cultural heritage.

Sustainable restoration and revitalisation of cultural heritage and public cultural infrastructure - investment

The objective of the investment is to support sustainable tourism development by revitalising cultural heritage and public cultural infrastructure. The investment includes the refurbishment, restoration, comprehensive revitalisation and modernisation of public cultural heritage sites.

A total of EUR 42 million from the Recovery and Resilience Facility has been earmarked for the implementation of the investment. The state has so far disbursed just over EUR 31 million to project implementers for completed project activities.

Of the 17 projects planned for funding, 14 have been fully completed, while the majority of the remaining projects are due to be finalised by the end of June 2026.

All projects for the restoration of cultural monuments owned by municipalities have been completed:

• Defenders of the Crown and Borders - the project of renovation and revival of the ground floor of Črnomelj Castle and the town centre of Črnomelj;
• Experience the Castle View - Podčetrtek Castle,
• Kozlov rob Castle - The Past for The Future,
• Ormož Castle and Park - Architectural, Digital and Horticultural Transformation,
• Podsreda Castle - Cultural Heritage and Tourism,
• Cultural Experiences of Jelšingrad Manor,
• Štanjel Cultural Incubator,
• Notranjska Museum Postojna - third phase of reconstruction of the Postojna Garrison,
• Radlje Manor - the cultural and forest centre of the Upper Drava Valley,
• Rural Transport Museum,
• Renovation of buildings in the museum area of the Old Ironworks in Ravne na Koroškem,
• Pilon Gallery - a five-star treasure trove of art.

Projects for the restoration of cultural monuments of national importance:

• Comprehensive restoration of the Črnomelj Cultural Centre - completed;
• Vrba - comprehensive restoration of a cultural monument - completed;
• Restoration of Vrba 1 house next to the Prešeren homestead - in progress;
• Comprehensive restoration of Negova Castle - in progress;
• Comprehensive restoration of Turjak Castle - in progress.

All activities related to the objective of the investment must be completed by 31 August 2026 at the latest.

The milestone related to the selection of projects was included by Slovenia in the third request for payment of European funds from the RRF, which the European Commission (EC) paid in full in October 2024. The target of the investment, which envisages the restoration of at least 15 cultural heritage sites, will be included by Slovenia in the final payment request, which will be submitted to the EC no later than 30 September 2026.