Amelia Vicini, president of the Inicia Education Foundation’s board of directors, emphasized money isn’t everything when talking about education. The Dominican Republic has learned this the hard way after funneling billions into public education and having little to show in improvements in quality education.
When speaking during the Education Cannot Wait: Guaranteeing Conditions and Financing for a Better Future in Latin America and the Caribbean, the businesswoman said that while increased funding is crucial for improving education in the Latin American region, it is not sufficient on its own.
Vicini highlighted the need for effective management and oversight within education systems. “To ensure quality education, we need structures that are focused on providing a high-quality service, with stable, coherent, and consistent management over time,” she stated.
Vicini proposed three ways in which the private sector can support stable management of education systems:
•Advocating for autonomy: Joining with other stakeholders to push for autonomous management of education systems.
•Strengthening oversight: Supporting local, provincial, and national oversight mechanisms through initiatives like corporate sponsorship of schools, empowering parent-teacher associations, and conducting regular audits of educational outcomes and ministry performance.
•Direct investment: Investing directly to improve efficiency, ensuring the implementation of plans and monitoring long-term progress.
Vicini highlighted the Inicia Education Foundation’s decade-long commitment to supporting the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Education. She outlined the foundation’s impact investing criteria, which include making multi-year investments, measuring and evaluating outcomes, investing in talent, and strengthening the national learning assessment system.
“With our sustained and active presence, we hope to serve as a constant support in this important equation for the Dominican Republic,” Vicini concluded in her participation in the Education Cannot Wait event.
26 September 2024