Announcement of Colombia Improves Education in Rural Areas 169 Million Dollars Project will Contribute to Poverty Reduction on December 22, 1988

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A. BANK NEWS RELEASE NO. 89/23 Contact: A. M. Pimenta-Neves (202) 473-8722 COLOMBIA IMPROVES EDUCATION IN RURAL AREAS $169 million proiect will contribute to poverty reduction WASHINGTON, December 22, 1988 -- Colombia will expand and improve primary education, especially in rural areas, with the help of a $100 million loan from the World Bank. The government's $169.2 million project is part of the Bank's overall assistance strategy for Colombia, which assigns priority to poverty alleviation and improved efficiency in key sectors. Education in Colombia has expanded since the 1960s, with enrollments in grades 1-5 reaching 90 percent of all children, but it still offers uneven quality and distribution. Only 20 percent of rural students complete primary education, while secondary education is largely available only in urban areas. Admission examinations at secondary schools and universities show that candidates are acquiring, on average, less than 40 percent of expected knowledge. The project will improve the management and mobilization of resources for primary education, raise educational standards, and make education more accessible. It will raise the share of public education investment for the primary level from 20 percent to 35 percent over the next six years and direct 75 percent of this investment to rural areas. In the rural areas, the project will finance training for 20,000 teachers, educational materials for about 25,000 schools, and furnishings or upgraded facilities for more than 13,000 schools. In the urban areas, the project will provide materials for 30,000 classrooms and furniture for 2,100 schools. It will also finance the distribution of 3.3 million textbooks and training of 6,500 teachers. The government will transfer 5,000 teaching positions that are vacant or excessive to areas which need them. To retain teachers in remote areas, the government will provide incentives such as housing loans and health insurance. The World Bank loan is for 17 years, including a five-year grace period, with a variable interest rate, currently 7.59 percent, linked to the cost of the Bank's borrowings. It also carries an annual commitment charge of 0.75 percent on the undisbursed balance. NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents.