At the Zlati kamen awards ceremony on February 28, 2023, the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) awarded the Municipality of Health award for the fourth year in a row.
The following municipalities were shortlisted: Izola, Brda, Gorenja Vas – Poljane, Trzin, Mirna, Starše, Velenje, Ravne na Koroškem and Murska Sobota. This year, the honorary title was awarded to the MoD of Velenje. All the selected municipalities are distinguished by the active attitude of local communities towards the health of their residents and the understanding of health in the broadest sense of the word.
The merits of this year's Community of Health were highlighted by the head of the Unit for Non-communicable Diseases at the regional unit of NIJZ Celje, Nuša Konec Juričič, dr. med., spec. and head of the expert committee for the selection of the Municipality of Health - Radivoje Pribaković Brinovec, Ph.D. med., specialist, head of the Center for Management of Prevention and Health Promotion Programs at NIJZ.
In Velenje, the economic boom in the field of coal mining and power generation caused the degradation of the area, which required an effective response from the local and wider community. Health and the environment have become the priority areas of local politics, companies, civil initiatives and societies, which have succeeded in carrying out comprehensive ecological rehabilitation through mutual cooperation. Due to the closure of the coal mining activity, the MoD of Velenje is currently entering the process of restructuring from a coal mine to a green region without negative social consequences and a decline in economic activity.
The sustainable urban strategy for Velenje until 2023 defines five pillars of urban development (smart Velenje, green Velenje, social Velenje, just transition and integrated and sustainable development) and two horizontal areas (digitalization and resilience). The municipality is aware that in order to mitigate the consequences of climate change, it is necessary to invest in green infrastructure and strengthen resilience through investments to manage environmental risks. Efforts are being made to revitalize degraded land for other economic activities as much as possible. In the broader context of health in the municipality, they recognize the importance of creative spending of free time for young people.
Concern for citizens' health is reflected in the inclusion of health in the overall municipal strategy and numerous action plans related to it. At the same time, citizens are actively involved in the preparation of strategic and development documents, and throughout the year they can co-shape life in the municipality through the interactive portal Sooblikujmo Velenje. Content about health is popular among citizens, as assessed by the NIJZ CELJE regional unit on the basis of initiatives addressed to experts in the field of public health by the local media. They regularly cooperate with the local television station VTV, and prepare regular columns for the local newspaper Naš čas on the topic of health indicators that stand out in the municipality.
The Velenje Municipality is one of those municipalities that allocates one of the larger budget shares to broader health issues. The values of key health indicators have continuously improved in recent years, among which we highlight the overnutrition of children and adults, the proportion of smokers, high-risk drinking and the proportion of diseases directly related to alcohol, we note a significant increase in response to the SVIT and DORA screening programs. There are fewer hospitalizations due to asthma in children and adolescents, tick-borne meningoencephalitis and injuries in transport accidents.
In Velenje, they think globally and act locally. Together with the citizens, they want to co-create the city of the future, which will be full of life and good energy, even more modern, with enough jobs and apartments for all generations, and with even better conditions for creative and active leisure time.
You can read more about the selection process of the Municipality of Health and the winners from previous years here . Read about the four regional winners - recipients of the Zlati kamen awards here .
