Balázs Hankó, the state secretary for innovation and higher education, said on Monday that “it is an honour as well as a responsibility” to be asked by the prime minister to fill the post of minister of culture of innovation, adding that “I’ve been assigned not a post, but a task”. In an interview to MTI, Hankó thanked János Csák, the outgoing minister, for “all I have learned from him about leadership and diplomacy”. Speaking about his professional background, he said he had helped the work of the government since 2010 first as an advisor on health care, later as ministerial commissioner for the development of medical universities and afterwards as deputy state secretary for higher education. Hankó said he had taken up the post of deputy state secretary for higher education in the summer of 2022 and was appointed to oversee the areas of higher education, vocational and adult training, and innovation in December that year. Hankó highlighted the importance of family, saying that “as minister, I view it as my primary future task to maintain Hungary’s fundamental goal to support families and those who plan to start one.”
In the area of higher education, the incoming minister highlighted the importance of boosting the competitiveness of Hungarian universities and further boosting vocational training.