New School Year, New Challenges, New Achievements

Radio Habana Cuba

Spetember 7, 2004

Nearly three million Cuban children of different educational levels from today on are filling the classrooms at the beginning of the new school year. This academic year brings with it new and particular challenges to grow and develop in a world full of difficulties but also full of hopes and aspirations.

This Caribbean island over the 45 years that have passed since the triumph of the revolution has built a unique educational system in Latin America, one that makes real that which in other latitudes is still only a dream or an illusion.

All the conditions exist here to receive a truly universal and free education, principles that are written into the basic laws of almost all the countries of the region, but are put into practice in very few cases. This is not only because of a lack of political will but above all because of the hard economic reality that touches the lives of the people whose children from the youngest age are obliged to work for the family to survive.

In Cuba, as it is known worldwide, there are no street children and child labor does not exist. No matter how isolated the area there is always a classroom and a teacher and with the more ambitious projects already put into practice, there are university level teaching centers in each municipality to bring higher education to everybody in the country.

Thanks to this original program, from today on 350 thousand people will attend the university centers, which represents an increase of more than 40 thousand pupils in relation to the most numerous higher education courses attended between 1986 and 1987

As well as that, in spite of the damage due to the recent passage of Hurricane Charley through the western part of the Island in which nearly 800 schools were damaged, from early morning today in Cuba 3,543 education centers were adequately equipped to receive pupils.

This signifies a huge effort, which involved not only Cuban construction workers, who did the major part of the job, but also teachers who voluntarily interrupted their vacations to collaborate with the restoration work as did the parents and neighbors of each locality.

An army of 304 thousand teachers, including student teachers, together with teachers of long experience, made up an impressive infrastructure that guaranteed the supply of uniforms, pencils, copy books, text books, food and the most modern computer and video technology. The two national television education channels will be put in motion from today to guarantee the success of the teaching year.

This education system, a jewel of the revolution, a reason for all Cubans to be proud, will never stop growing and developing according to the principles of our national hero José Martí and extends much further than the frontiers of this country.

 

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Copyright © Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Cuba, 2003