On 17 October 2022, the Minister of Justice, H.E. Dominika Švarc Pipan, hosted the fourth Advisory Group meeting of the European Union/Council of Europe Joint Project on Improving the juvenile justice system in Slovenia in Ljubljana and thereby strengthened the commitment of the Ministry of Justice in this area. The Minister stressed the importance of the Barnahus in Slovenia and its successful implementation and functioning which stands as good example of cross sectorial collaboration.

In the presence of DG REFORM, and the Council of Europe, all relevant Ministries were present to create momentum to ensure a dynamic and high-level engagement in the juvenile justice reform process of all Ministries and professionals following the extension of the project (01 September – 31 May 2022). The presence of health professionals and from the judiciary was an opportunity to ensure that this process relies also on their practices of policies and their gaps.

Three Council of Europe experts were present online to share possible solutions to tackle issues in the field of juvenile justice, such as restorative justice measures and the specialisation of the judiciary with examples of good practices from Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. These examples were welcomed and will be further explored with all stakeholders in future activities to be held with Council of Europe experts in Ljubljana on 8-9 December 2022.