Basic education top priority, says new minister
The new education ministers, Renato Janine Ribeiro, speaks to the press after his inauguration ceremony
Basic education in Brazil—which goes from preschool all the way to the last year of high school—will be the top priority of the Ministry of Education in terms of resource allocation, said the new Minister, Renato Janine Ribeiro, who took office this Monday (Apr 6). “[...] the focus will be on basic education. […] This is how it should be. It's rather obvious: it's the children who are the most vulnerable,” he said.
To meet this goal, Janine plans to mobilize federal universities and institutes. He went on to mention the National Program for the Access to Vocational Education and Employment (Pronatec) as one of the government's priorities.
During the minister's inauguration ceremony, President Dilma Rousseff guaranteed that the funds earmarked for key initiatives in education are to be preserved, even after the fiscal adjustment is implemented. Janine said that the ministry will contribute to the economy and also ascertain what costs may be put off. “We don't know how big the cuts are going to be yet. We'll apportion the reimbursements in case the reduction is significant,” he said.
In a speech to the press, Janine talked about the National Education Plan, which sets 20 goals to for the upcoming decade, ranging from preschool up to post-graduation programs. Among the goals is the so-called Guidebook, which is expected to “bring about a radical change in Brazil's education” in 10 years' time. The plan also stipulates that at least 10% of the country's GDP are to be invested in education by the end of the 10-year period.
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: Basic education top priority, says new minister
