In a recent interview,
Mari Carmen Ecoro, Minister of Education and Science, discussed several
ongoing initiatives for improving education as well as previous educational accomplishments
of Equatorial Guinea.
One of
Equatorial Guinea’s most effective initiatives for improving
education has been to
meet and exceed United Nations standards achieving high literacy rates and primary
education goals.
The government
has invested heavily on educational development and training, and it continues
to be a top priority. One of the government’s greatest accomplishments in
education is the addition of a pre-school level to the current system. “In less
than four years, the pre-school level has become a formal part of education.
UNICEF previously ran it. The government made the decision to start educating
children from an early stage instead of waiting until primary school,” said
Mari Carmen Ecoro.
The Minister of Education continued to say, “We have seen the
improvement that pre-school level has brought to Equatorial Guinea. We can see
children from three or four years old with the ability to read, unlike before
where children had to wait until they were seven or eight to go to school.”
Minister Ecoro is a psychologist with expertise in
mental health, negotiation and conflict resolution, and behavior modification.
She received a bachelor’s degree from Queens College and a master’s degree from Columbia
University.
