As changes in the world accelerate and our future becomes more complex and uncertain, having the values, knowledge and tools to understand and transform it is no longer just an aspirational purpose, but one of survival. And although all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean know the importance of children and young people having access to quality education in order to acquire them, contribute to the equitable and sustainable development of their countries and become the person they want to be, we are far from achieving that goal.
In recent decades, the region has made great strides in expanding the coverage of its educational systems, from preschool levels to higher education. However, despite the efforts and investments, inequality and gaps persisted in access, permanence and educational achievement for the most vulnerable and marginalized groups. With the pandemic, which hit our region particularly hard, these gaps that we were already dragging became more visible and deeper. Hundreds of thousands of girls, boys and young people who did not have the family, socioeconomic conditions, or access to connectivity were temporarily or permanently disassociated from school. Those who were able to support themselves through remote or online options managed to learn only a minimum part of what was expected. We know that the impacts of closing schools for almost two full school years were not limited to education, but also affected the safety, physical and mental health, and general well-being of a large part of the student body.
This situation is putting at risk the possibilities of millions of girls, boys and young people to be able to guarantee themselves a dignified life, contribute to their family and their country and fulfill themselves personally and socially. Not acting with a sense of urgency for a recovery and transformation of education is to give up the main driver of our growth, our coexistence, the sustainability of our development and even our collective identity.
The educational panorama could not be more challenging, even more so in the face of a new economic crisis that affects the entire region. Latin America already experienced something similar in the crisis of the 1980s, when not only did production and employment fall, but also educational budgets were reduced. This led to a drop in coverage, as close to half of a generation was left with only a weak primary education.
Today, 40 years later, we are still paying the cost of yesterday’s cutting our investment in education. It can’t happen to us again. Today we know that there is no more expensive saving than saving in education and, for this reason, rather than going back, we need to take advantage of this crisis as an opportunity to make the changes that do not wait any longer; because the pandemic also —a bit by force— made it clear that there were other ways of doing education.
Such is the meaning of Summit for the Transformation of Education convened by the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, who calls for placing education as a fundamental priority. It is urgent to understand that, without a profound transformation of the way our educational systems operate, it will be impossible to achieve the objective of guaranteeing inclusive, equitable and quality education throughout life, which is enabling to advance in the objectives that we have outlined ourselves as humanity in the 2030 Agenda.
In recent days, within the framework of the III Regional Meeting of Ministers of Education of Latin America and the Caribbean, the ministers of education of the region ratified their commitment to the recovery and transformation of educational systems. For this purpose, they prioritized the full face-to-face return to educational environments, the recovery of learning, the reintegration of those who dropped out of school, care for the socio-emotional and comprehensive well-being of the educational community, and support and training for teachers. They also recognized that “recovery cannot mean going back to the same thing” and that it is necessary to “prioritize education on the public agenda of our nations, guaranteeing adequate state financing of education in order to achieve the proposed objectives.”
These conclusions, which will be presented as a message from the region at the educational pre-summit to be held in Paris on June 29 and 30, in preparation for the Summit on the Transformation of Education, are a sign of encouragement for the region. .
The challenge, however, goes beyond any declaration and the summit itself: the challenge is to fulfill the right of every Latin American girl, boy and youth to have access to a quality education. They will be the judges of what we do or do not do today. We cannot fail them.
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