Education, Culture and Sport with increase of more than 10 million Euros in the Plan and Budget proposals - Sofia Ribeiro - Communication

Secretaria Regional da Educação, Cultura e Desporto

The Regional Secretary Sofia Ribeiro today announced an increase of 10.2 million Euros in the areas under her responsibility - Education, Culture and Sport - corresponding to a global amount of about 54 million Euros.

"We propose the consistency and consolidation of the work carried out, which has guaranteed the evolution and growth of the Region and the development of the Azoreans" she said. The government official spoke at the Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, in the city of Horta, during the discussion of the proposals for the Medium-Term Guidelines 2024-2028 and the Plan and Budget for 2024.

Sofia Ribeiro stated that she had kept "the approach presented in November 2023," making "the necessary adjustments" following the rejection of the Annual Regional Plan for 2024.

"With this proposal, we continue to prioritise the development of school success, the fight against school failure and early dropout from education and training. We continue to strive for improvements in results, teaching and learning, and we continue to focus on recognising the work of education professionals," she stressed.

The Secretary for Education recalled that, during the mandate of the XIII Government of the Azores, "the rate of early dropout from education and training fell by five percentage points," the national exam averages in the Azores ‘came closer to national averages’ and the "support for students with special needs" was increased.

"And this is how we intend to continue. In 2024, the largest share of the education plan will continue to be directed towards school welfare. Almost half of the plan aims to support Azorean families and the development of our Region," emphasised Sofia Ribeiro.

In her speech, she pointed out that more than 20,000 computers and tablets have already been delivered to schools and all pupils" will have free textbooks in the Region" by 2026.

As for Culture, the Regional Secretary announced an investment of more than seven million Euros.

"Support for cultural agents and the preservation of whaling heritage will be increased once again. In fact, the support granted under the Legal Support Scheme for Cultural Activities accounts for the largest share of the investment plan in the area of Culture," she emphasised.

Sofia Ribeiro assured that the revision of the support scheme for cultural activities, which is already underway, "will speed up and ensure greater transparency in the allocation of support."

"Compared to 2023, there are increases for training schools, the promotion of the public reading network, the awarding of cultural prizes, the support of Azorean heritage, the conservation and maintenance of buildings owned by the Regional Directorate for Culture and archaeological research," she said.

As regards Sport, Sofia Ribeiro revealed that the proposal presents an increase of "more than two million Euros" to support "sporting events and clubs participating in non-professional competitions,"  the competitive participation of clubs and high-performance sports.

"We intend to continue the good results registered in the last term, increasing the number of participants, the number of federated athletes, the number of training levels, and the number of referees, judges, coaches and managers, as well as the figures that show improvements in the Region's sporting results," she added. 

With a view to continuing the "growth trend," the Azorean Government intends to "invest in sports agents and literacy in motor skills from childhood, the promotion of ethics and training, and the encouragement of intergenerational and community physical activity," she said.