2022 Reports

The (Im)Possible Reform: Facing the Challenges of the Education Sector: 2018-2020

Chacón Ugarte, Gabriela; Benavides, Martín

As a former Minister of Education in Peru, Martín Benavides described the challenges and difficulties that he faced as a public servant in this summary of his book La reforma (im)possible: enfrentando desafíos del sector educación. 2018-2020. Benavides addressed his experience as Superintendent of the maximum authority regulating higher education in Peru (SUNEDU) during a conflicting political context in which corporate investors and Congress members were exerting pressure to impact the institution's decisions to their benefit. Benavides also explained how he set up a reform that aimed at standardizing quality in higher education, and the backlash received when private, then public universities, began shutting down. Last, Benavides delved into the unstable conditions of Peruvian politics during his appointment as Minister of Education, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the remote learning strategy adopted by the ministry to provide distance education.