Porto Alegre Declaration

Porto Alegre Declaration

The Rectors, Presidents, Directors of Higher Education Institutions and Associations and other academic authorities participating in the III Summit of Iberian and Latin American Public Universities Rectors at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, express their deepest concern regarding the policies encouraged by the World Trade Organization (WTO), directed to favour international trade of education services, equaling them to plain commodities. The powerful interests lobbying this policy press to transform higher education into a profitable worldwide market, with the consequent deregulation and removal of all legal, political and fiscal quality controls.

The proposal to liberalize trade of higher education services is part of a continued process of drastic public financial support cutbacks and promotion of private education globalization, with the intention of having national governments abandon their specific political function of guidance, direction and management in the areas for which they are socially responsible.

These opinions seriously impair equity policies crucial for the achievement of social equilibrium, especially in developing countries, and essential to correct social inequalities, and they have serious consequences upon our cultural identity. Furthermore, they disrupt the consolidation and diffusion of ethic and cultural values and affect our aspirations to reach a more democratic and just society through sustainable development, which are all objectives that higher education contributes to attain. Its specific mission is defined and conceived as a public social good dedicated to the improvement of the quality of life of our people. Under no means can it accomplish this function if it is transformed into a plain commodity, or subjected to market speculations by international trade.

Finally, among the serious problems caused by this situation, we must mention the non analyzed standardization of education and its most negative impact upon national sovereignty and that of the people.

Consequently, the Iberian and Latin American academics hereby gathered, reaffirming the commitments made by the governments and by the international academic community at the World Conference on Higher Education held in Paris in October 1998, conceiving higher education as a public good, alert the university community and the entire society about the disastrous consequences of such proceedings and require the governments of their respective countries not to subscribe any commitment on this issue within the framework of the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS).

Porto Alegre, Brazil, April 27, 2002