The President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, called on Chileans to take advantage of opportunities created by economic growth and acknowledge the things that are going well.

“I ask you, is there any country that can continue improving people’s economic conditions and jobs if things are going bad there? That’s enough. The time has come to acknowledge the good things and stop the pessimism. We need to take advantage of opportunities, as you all are doing, and move forward,”

he said.
At the ceremonial opening of the adult education school year in the Santiago-area district of Pudahuel, the President stated that

“I must say that I am enormously concerned with this sort of pessimism, a negative vision that is taking hold in some places.”

She added that

“it’s true, there are problems, but this administration and myself have confronted them face-to-face, saying when things are good and when things are bad. And I will never, ever say that something is good when it’s not. However, it’s quite another thing to say that nothing works, that everything is bad. That is completely false.”

During the event, at which she was joined by Education Minister Yasna Provoste and Labor Minister Osvaldo Andrade, she pointed to recent jobs indicators showing lower unemployment.

“What did the last jobless index show us? It showed a new drop in unemployment—a trend, not an isolated number. There are more jobs,”

she said, adding that the most important thing about increasing job opportunities is that they are salaried jobs,

“With contracts, better quality and pay, and more opportunities for women. We have to keep working to ensure more jobs for women, for men, for young people. But the news is good.”

President Bachelet continued that

“external economic reports show that in general, Latin America is going to grow a bit less than last year, but that the country in Latin America expected to grow the most is Chile, and we are going to grow more than last year.”

While she acknowledged persistent needs and pending challenges, but clarified that

“we are confronting them day by day. And I am sure that at the end of my term, this will be a better country for each one of us.”

She highlighted progress made in Chilean educational policy, which emphasizes a move towards higher educational standards for all. She thus affirmed that

“there is no other activity that raises as many hopes as education. And based on the progress we have made in recent years, we need to face these new challenges, to achieve higher levels of equity and higher quality standards and support for those who have not finished their elementary or high school educations.”

The President emphasized that some of these challenges are urgent. For example, she said, 4% of Chileans over 15 do not know how to read and write, 30% of Chilean adults only have elementary school educations and 22% have not completed high school. However, she continued, much progress has been made in recent years. Adult education programs have tripled in size, from including 76,000 people in 1990 to including 220,000 people in 2006.

Bachelet continued that much more could be done in this area.

“We can and want much more. We want to continue increasing coverage, to reach the goal of 800,000 people beginning or continuing their studies between now and 2010,”

she said, reporting that a new curriculum would be gradually introduced to allow different establishments to develop their own plans incorporate a 5th grade curriculum into their programs.

Meanwhile, teacher training will continue, allowing educators to renew their methodologies and renew their equipment. The President added that institutions would be strengthened as well, in order to offer ongoing programs and focus on adults with family and work-related responsibilities beyond their educational endeavors.

In conclusion, President Bachelet said that particular emphasis would be placed on elementary and high school education as part of the upcoming System of Ongoing Formation. She insisted on her commitment to education for all, including adults, as a fundamental aspect of he ideal for Chile to which all aspire.