Chile: World Bank Approves $75.7 Million For Lifelong Learning And Training Project
WASHINGTON, D.C., March 19, 2002—The World Bank today approved a $75.75
million loan to support Chile’s initiative to provide basic, secondary and technical
education and training programs to adults, especially unemployed youth and the
working poor. This program’s overall goal is to ensure that Chileans acquire
the skills and knowledge needed to meet the demands of a competitive, rapidly-changing
economy.
"Chile has made enormous progress in the last 10 years in improving the
quality and coverage of primary and secondary education, and now it is time
to focus more attention on those who have already left the school system,"
said Myrna Alexander, Director of the World Bank’s program in Argentina. "This
program will raise the standard of that education, by upgrading workers’ reading,
writing, problem-solving and analytical skills."
The Lifelong Learning and Training Project will concentrate on strengthening
the capacity of low-income and poor adults, by providing them with a range of
basic and secondary education and training opportunities, improving the quality
of technical education, and strengthening the institutions that deliver training
services.
"Chile will benefit by having a more highly-skilled labor force that will
make the country more competitive in the global economy," said Juan Prawda,
World Bank Project Task Manager. "A more competitive labor force contributes
directly to reducing poverty."
The project will enable about 120,000 adults to complete and certify their
basic and/or secondary education. Another 142,000 technical secondary education
students and 65,000 technical tertiary education students will benefit as their
training facilities will improve, and 250,000 adults will gain access to distance-education
training modules. The project will support the training of 12,000 workers of
about 6,000 small and medium enterprises. In addition, the project will establish
a system of national competency framework in nine sectors of the Chilean economy.
This single-currency, fixed spread loan has a repayment period of 9.5 years,
including a grace period of 7.5 years. The project is expected to run from 2002
through to 2008.
For more information on the World Banks’ work in the Latin America and Caribbean
region, please visit: http//www.worldbank.org/lac
Contact Person:
Christopher Neal (202) 473-7229
Alejandra Viveros (202)-473-4306
