Guatemalan and Dominican Education Authorities Exchange Experiences

Guatemalan and Dominican Education Authorities Exchange Experiences
Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo, 05/29/2011

Guatemalan education authorities attended a working lunch with members of the Dominican National Council of Education (CNE), headed by Minister of Education, Josefina Pimentel. The object of the meeting was to exchange experiences in the reform process underway for the past several years in the Dominican education system.

The Council is in the process of establishing contacts in Chile, Peru and Costa Rica to gather ideas and information on educational advances in those countries with the idea of applying them in Guatemala. 

The Guatemalan mission, made up of representatives of various institutions, is part of the recently-formed National Education Council of Guatemala. The Council is in the process of establishing contacts in Chile, Peru and Costa Rica to gather ideas and information on educational advances in those countries with the idea of applying them in Guatemala. 

Education Minister Josefina Pimentel, in welcoming the Guatemalan visitors, explained that the Dominican education reform was initiated as a national effort through which a Ten Year Education Plan from 1992 to 2002 was put into effect. One of the main proposals of the plan was to implement a new Education Law, according to the Press Department of the Dominican Education Ministry.

Minister Pimentel explained that the Dominican Education System previously operated under a 1951 law when the worldview, educational philosophy and policy approach no longer corresponded to that phase of the country’s development.

She also recounted how, from that process, conditions were created for professionals to work in a participatory and intersectional manner within a new judicial proposal, a legal and organic framework of the Dominican education system.

Ms. Pimentel congratulated the Guatemalan education authorities on their initiative, which she called praiseworthy for its serious effort to strengthen their decision-making organizations.

“We as a ministry are honored and we reiterate our welcome and our intention to continue cooperating in any area we, as a country or ministry, can support and humbly share our advances and experiences to assist you in improving your system. We will share the lessons we learned and the processes we have undergone over the past 20 years,” said the Education Minister. 
 
Meanwhile, Héctor Alfredo Molina Loza, representative of the National Council for the Attention of People with Disabilities in the Guatemala Education Council (CNE) graciously thanked his Dominican counterparts for the enormous knowledge and experience they shared.

In addition to Molina Loza, the Guatemalan commission included Felipe de la Cruz López, of the Pueblo Xinka organization; José Ángel de la Cruz Muñoz, of the University of San Carlos of Guatemala; Diana Marie Brown de Padilla, representative of owners of directors of private education centers; Felipe David Sánchez González, of the Garifuna People’s organizations; Diana Mercedes Canella de Luna, of the Coordinating Committee of the Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and Financial Associations; Alberto Esquit Choy, Technical Secretary of the CNE and Werner Ramírez, of the Agency of German Cooperation GTZ.

Working lunch offered by the National Council for Education led by Education Minister Josefina Pimentel as a welcome to representatives of various Guatemalan educational institutions.