The OEI closes a year marked by the 75th anniversary and the Princess of Asturias Award

The Diplomat The Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture (OEI) concludes the year 2024 as “one of the most symbolic and important in its history”, with the achievement of “great milestones” such as the Princess of Asturias Award for International Cooperation, the 75th anniversary of its founding or its participation in the G20 Leaders Summit in Brazil. On the ground, according to the organization in a press release, the work of the OEI benefited nearly 20 million people in the last two years through 770 projects executed in the region. Also, for the first time in its history, the organization participated in September in a United Nations General Assembly as an observer body and organized in Brazil the G20 ministerial working groups on Education and Culture, in Fortaleza and Salvador de Bahía, respectively. In the educational field, in the last year the OEI has marked the route to strengthen the digitalization of the region's educational systems with a focus on innovation, the impact of technologies such as AI, teacher training and early childhood development. Another of the year's objectives was to promote sustainability, inclusion and productivity through innovation. Regarding science, this year saw the launch of 'Energytran', an OEI initiative funded by the European Union, which seeks to promote a clean and fair energy transition in Latin America and Europe, supporting government decision-making based on the results arising from the generation and transfer of knowledge between participating research centers. The year 2024 also consolidated the Ibero-American Researchers' Night, organized by the OEI, as the most important scientific dissemination event in the region. In addition, promoting scientific vocations in girls and young women was also a priority this year. In Peru and Uruguay, the projects “We Are Women and We Do Science” and “More Women in Science” were launched, respectively, programs that aim to enhance the role of girls and women in science with the participation of prominent local scientists. In terms of culture, Brazil was the setting for important meetings for regional culture this year, such as the fourth National Conference on Culture in March, the first Ibero-American Meeting on Culture of the OEI in April, and the launch of the Ibero-American Program for Cultural and Creative Industries in August, which seeks to value and understand the power of culture in the regional economy. In terms of multilingualism, in May the European Commission highlighted the project ‘Border Schools’ that the OEI is implementing in more than fifty schools on the Spanish-Portuguese border as an example of good practices, and in November the Ibero-American Chair on Bilingual Intercultural Education was launched in Paraguay to promote more and better bilingualism in the region’s classrooms. In Peru, the pilot phase of the mobile application “Lenguas” was completed. It was developed in conjunction with the IDB and sought to promote the teaching and learning of the Quechua language Collao in more than 5,000 students in that country. On the other hand, this year the OEI committed to promoting human rights as a key element for democratic coexistence in the region. To this end, in February, it launched the Ibero-American Network for Human Rights and for Democratic Citizenship with the aim of helping to mitigate factors such as polarization and disaffection around democracy in Ibero-America. On the other hand, in April, in Madrid, the platform “Voices of Ibero-American Women” was presented to make more experts visible in the regional public agenda and thus contribute to the promotion of effective parity. “All this activity reflects an organization committed to the development of a constantly evolving Ibero-America and that is committed to the continuous improvement of its processes through internal and external audits that guarantee its transparency, as well as the implementation of cutting-edge training and communication strategies that put its beneficiaries, audiences and collaborators at the center,” the OEI highlighted. “In 2025, a year that looms with pressing challenges for the region such as the digital lag in some areas or climate change, the OEI will continue to promote alliances and work tirelessly, so that, in line with its motto, cooperation really continues to happen,” it concluded.

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