A teachers’ strike scheduled for September 17 and 18 in Paraguay challenges the 2027 budget bill, which excludes agreed raises and demands, while senators Blanca Ovelar and Celeste Amarilla disagree over the causes of the education crisis, the results of the 2025 PISA assessment given to 6,507 students, the Ñe’ẽry program, which received US$12 million in 2023, and criticism of teacher training and meritocracy; Amarilla also fears a return of banking crises and mentions Banco Atlas and Ueno, a Paraguayan digital bank.
Ministerio de Educación y Ciencias
Pytagua coverage mentioning Ministerio de Educación y Ciencias.
Paraguay recorded one of the weakest Latin American performances in PISA 2025, with declines in reading, science and mathematics, while Hermenegildo Cohene Velázquez was appointed to chair the National Council of Higher Education, replacing Luis Fernando Ramírez.
Paraguayan teachers will hold a nationwide strike on September 17 and 18 to press for the inclusion of an 8% pay increase in the 2027 budget, with the possibility of expanding the mobilization and joining the doctors’ strike.
Paraguay fell in reading and science in PISA 2025 and ranked 11th among 13 Latin American countries. The results fueled debate over the digital administration of the test, screen use and artificial intelligence, and education policies such as the Ñe’ēry program; Minister Luis Ramírez said he would explain the results at a press conference on Friday.
Raúl Latorre said Hernán Rivas presented himself as a lawyer to represent the Chamber of Deputies on the JEM. Hugo Estigarribia said a final conviction could prompt an examination of decisions if Rivas’s vote was decisive.
Paraguay’s Ministry of the Interior projects increasing the National Police force to 42,611 officers by December 2026, with 5,000 new graduates, stronger training and internal controls, while Minister Enrique Riera acknowledges that the expansion will not eliminate the sense of insecurity.
Paraguay’s 2027 General National Budget bill directs most education funding to salaries and benefits, with different percentages applying to different allocation scopes, and may be amended during consideration.
Sandra Isabel Cárdenas says G. 34,112,616 was deducted from her salary in two collection cases based on the same promissory note, which she says she never signed. She reported the case to the Public Prosecutor’s Office and links it to the so-called “promissory-note mafia.”
Paraguay’s Public Prosecutor’s Office asked the courts to annul 144 demonstrably forged teaching diplomas and subsequently cancel the professional registrations linked to them. The investigation covers 525 suspicious documents and could hold beneficiaries, institutions and public officials involved accountable.
Paraguay’s Ministry of Education and Sciences restricted the registration of diplomas without accreditation and launched RUE-ES as the trial of Hernán Rivas revealed that his law degree was registered in six minutes after an alleged “higher-up order,” despite irregularities—an allegation denied by former minister Eduardo Petta.
A joint anti-drug operation between Paraguay and Brazil destroyed over 436 tons of marijuana in natural reserves in eastern Paraguay, causing an estimated loss of more than 65 million dollars to criminal groups.
Paraguayan Senator Esperanza Martínez denounces that politicians, including senators, deputies, governors, and ministers, are linked to drug trafficking, finance campaigns with illicit money, and enjoy impunity, pointing to systemic tolerance for corruption in the country.
The trial of former senator Hernán Rivas for using a fake law degree exposes widespread flaws in Paraguay's academic document control system, with university authorities admitting irregularities and the Ministry of Education confirming its registration system is insufficient.
Former Senator Enrique Bacchetta alerted the Chamber of Deputies in 2020 about doubts regarding Hernán Rivas' law degree, whose trial for using a false document reveals certificates with serious spelling errors and testimony from a former university rector who claims to have signed it inside a car without ever seeing Rivas attend classes.
Paraguay's Ministry of Education is creating a blockchain-based cryptographic diploma registry following an internal scandal that revealed hundreds of forged documents.
A study by Aneaes indicates that graduates from accredited programs in Paraguay earn up to 13% higher salaries in formal employment, while a critic points out that the public sector is the largest employer of professionals from non-accredited courses.
A fire destroyed around 70% of the Nápoles nightclub in central Asunción without causing any casualties.
Congressman Roberto González has accused the Minister of Education, Luis Fernando Ramírez, of appointing 916 interim teachers without the proper qualifications, citing specific cases, while only 798 tenured teachers from the Eligible Database were made permanent.
The Public Prosecutor's Office has requested the dismissal of the complaint against the Paraguayan director of Itaipú Binacional regarding the purchase of school furniture, having found no evidence of irregularities, although the case continues to generate public debate.
An investigation into fake university degrees in Paraguay, which is already looking into suspicions involving more than 300 local public officials, including high-ranking positions, has extended to Brazil with the scrutiny of hundreds of degrees issued by an unauthorized institution.
Three generations of a Paraguayan family, members of a dance academy that had won an international competition in Gramado, were killed and dozens injured when the bus bringing them back to Paraguay overturned in Santa Catarina, prompting the Paraguayan government to declare a period of mourning and mobilize assistance.
The Ministry of Education and Sciences (MEC) of Paraguay admits it is extremely difficult to identify all teachers with fake degrees after discovering that 550 user codes were used to carry out 130,000 irregular actions in the academic document registration system, with a formal complaint focusing on 330 suspicious titles.
The Paraguayan Ministry of Education and Sciences (MEC) has identified 13 public servants involved in irregularities within the diploma system, with 130,000 suspicious actions and 283 employees under investigation, while the Senate expands its inquiry to include 20 educational institutions, including the Universidad Sudamericana.
The prosecutor is investigating a scheme of fake diplomas within Paraguay's Ministry of Education, with over 300 documents identified, suspected sabotage of the system, and 17 higher education institutions under review by the National Council of Higher Education.