UNESCO Highlights Quality, Priority of Cuban Education

Paris, Mar 1. -The quality of and priority given to education in Cuba was highlighted in a report published Tuesday by UNESCO, including the literacy method "Yo si puedo" (Yes, I Can).

The report also emphasizes that education saves lives and says Cuba stands out for its low infant mortality rate.

The 2011 Education for All Global Monitoring Report, a yearly independent publication directed by Kevin Watkins, extols the degree of Cuban financial commitment in this sector.

Less than 40 percent of regional countries for which UNESCO provides pertinent information has spent more than five percent of their respective gross domestic products on education.

The "Yo si puedo" literacy program, created by a Cuban government government initiative in 2003, was used successfully in 12 Latin American countries in 2008, the report also states.

This project was part of broader strategies for achieving the universal literacy of adults in the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Panama and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the report says. (Prensa Latina)