Public universities at risk

It's been almost three months since the Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM) was closed. The UAM has been on strike for 82 days, the longest strike since it was created 45 years ago.

There is a scenario of economic hardship , which is the argument used by the university authorities not to fulfill the workers' demands . EL UNIVERSAL has revealed the shortcomings in many of its campuses , therefore, they can't pay the salaries of professors, researchers, and administrative employees . There is very little universities can do if they allocate up to 80% of its budget to the payroll , scholarships , and incentives .

State and federal government s lack the keenness to consolidate public universities . If about 20 university deans hadn't put pressure on the federal government, the 2019 Budget would have included an MXN $4,000 million cut for universities .

On the other hand, universities need to find mechanisms to generate their own resources in order to fulfill their needs. Promoting innovation and creativity among students , as well as cooperating with the private sector are options that should be considered.

The workers have the right to demand higher wages but almost three months after the strike , it is time to analyze the damages . There are 58,000 students who lost a trimester and almost 10,000 workers, both academics and administrative employees, who are on strike haven't been able to collect their wages for three months. The economic damages are calculated in MXN $30 million as a result of losses in lab materials and chemical reagents . It will take up to 18 months for the university to resume its activities.

Among the projects announced by the federal government is the creation of 100 public universities throughout the country with “degrees according to each region, (which will) provide quality education and no tuition fees for 64,000 students.” What would be the relevance of this project if there are universities going through financial crisis in the country?

The conflict in the UAM should be used to remember public universities ' urgent needs and the authorities' duty to grant economic resources when possible. This means to invest in the future of the next generations and therefore, the development and the future of the country.

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