Lula did not invest the R$801 million planned for literacy

Despite stating that literacy would be a priority in the Lula government, the Ministry of Education (MEC) did not execute a cent of the R$801 million budget planned for 2023, as shown in a report by Folha de São Paulo. With just two months left until the end of the year, the amount was not committed – the first stage of budget execution.

Initiatives to promote full-time schools are also having difficulty being implemented. Only 41% of the announced amount of R$1 billion was executed. Amounts not committed by December 31st return to the Union’s coffers.

The Lula government assured that basic education would be prioritized, especially literacy. The “National Literacy Child Commitment”, which was launched in June, aims to offer technical assistance and financial resources to state and municipal education networks. The promise is that R$2.4 billion reais will be invested by the end of the PT’s administration in 2026, which did not happen in these first ten months of government.

According to Saeb data from 2021, more than half of children (56.4%) are not literate at the expected age. In comparison to other countries, Brazil ranked 60th out of 65 participants in its first appearance in the world’s main international literacy exam, the PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study). Students in the 4th year of Brazilian elementary school (10 years of age) scored lower in reading skills than those from countries with a lower HDI (Human Development Index) than the national one, such as Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan.

Knowing how to read and write are fundamental skills that have a high impact throughout a child’s school life. Among the main consequences of literacy problems is school dropout.

The MEC was contacted, but until the publication of this report, he did not respond. The article will be updated with a response from the department.