“Concerning developments” affecting Peru’s higher education system could get worse under the tenure of the newly elected president, Keiko Fujimori, Latin American specialists fear.
Fujimori, who is set to be sworn in on 28 July, won the country’s closely fought election earlier this month, beating left-wing candidate Roberto Sánchez by fewer than 50,000 votes.
Her victory follows a series of lurches to the right in the region, including the recent election of Colombia’s Abelardo de la Espriella.
Rafael Shimabukuro, a research associate in Latin American development at the University of Cambridge, told Times Higher Education: “Even before Fujimori’s election, there were already several concerning developments around Peruvian higher education, which only threaten to get worse under the new government.
“The Beca Generación del Bicentenario, the government’s flagship scholarship scheme, was suspended at the last minute earlier this year, which left many young Peruvians with confirmed places in top universities abroad without their best funding opportunity. So far, I have seen few signs that the new government will restore these scholarships, which were modest to begin with.”
