00:00Colombia also hit the education system. In Cali, for example, more than 200,000 students
00:04are still without classes. Mildan Henao has the details.
00:09In Cali, one of the sectors currently facing enormous challenges is education. Eighty percent
00:15of public and private educational institutions were affected. Nearly 220,000 students have
00:22had their classes suspended, while authorities develop a strategy for how to safely return
00:27to the classroom and how to accommodate students whose schools are uninhabitable.
00:35In Cali, we have 3038 school facilities. Of those 3038, 214 have been reported to have sustained
00:43some type of damage. Of those 214 facilities, we have so far conducted inspections with engineering
00:52and structural experts, as well as architects. We have 10 crews working. As a result, we
00:59have already completed inspections at 99 of the 214 reported sites.
01:04The situation is also affecting universities. Several institutions of higher education, such
01:11as Antonio José Camacho University, located in the northern part of this city, have suffered
01:17damage to their facilities, and will have to temporarily switch to online learning to ensure academic
01:22continuity.
01:26We are facing an issue that affects every sector of society. Education is clearly one of them,
01:32from two perspectives. First, in terms of educational infrastructure, and second, in terms of the major
01:39challenges that families, students, and teachers themselves now face in resuming their studies
01:44and moving forward. Let's say that this implies that moving forward with a process of reconstruction
01:49cannot be limited exclusively to the university.
01:52The situation becomes complex because, in the case of schools that serve children and young people
01:58from the city's vulnerable communities, a huge problem arises. Not all students have access
02:03to the internet, computers, or adequate devices to connect to their classes. Furthermore, the families
02:09of many of these students are also suffering the consequences of the earthquake.
02:15Well, I think that, in any case, technology is advancing rapidly, but not fast enough to
02:20ensure that every child has access to a computer or a phone. And above all, not just that they
02:26have one, but that they can access the internet. Consider that in Guanaventura, for example, and in
02:31Choco, people don't have access to the internet daily or even weekly. There are cases where they
02:36can connect only for a few hours a day, even electricity, just imagine. If a country can't
02:41guarantee a steady supply of electricity, how can we possibly claim that providing a child
02:46with a computer or cell phone will guarantee their education in a post-pandemic and post-earthquake
02:51era?
02:53The earthquake caused material damage, but it also tested Cali's ability to guarantee a fundamental
02:59right, the right to education. And while the walls of the schools are being rebuilt, we must
03:05ensure something even more important, that no child or young person is left out of the education
03:10system because of this emergency. In Cali, Milton Hanau, Telesur.
03:16In Bolivia, President
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