The federal government announced this Friday (2) the expansion of the Pé-de-Meia program for high school students in public schools and whose families are registered in the Single Registry (CadÚnico) and have a per capita income of up to half the minimum wage. Currently, the benefit only covers students in public schools that are part of the Bolsa Família Program. 
With the expansion, around one million new students will benefit. The changes will also include students in youth and adult education (EJA).
The announcement was made during an event in Fortaleza (CE) attended by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The president defended the importance of investing resources in education in Brazil and called on the young people present at the ceremony not to give up on school and to dream of achieving any professional achievement through education.
“Studying is almost a sacred thing for a father and a mother. For us, the greatest legacy we can leave our children is to educate them, to form them into citizens, to give them a profession so they can work, and through their work, earn a decent and dignified salary to take care of their family. This is the great passion of any father and any mother.”
He emphasized that the resources allocated to education are not expenses, they are investments. “As long as I can put money into education, none of my ministers is allowed to use the word expenses. I will spend if I have to build jails or prisons to put these abandoned youth in. Education is an investment,” said the president.
The Minister of Education, Camilo Santana, highlighted the federal government’s sensitivity in promoting the Pé-de-Meia program, given the fact that around half a million students drop out of public schools in high school each year. “This program is here to tell Brazilian students that we do not want any student to leave public schools in this country. Because only through education can we transform lives. There is no way for the country and society to develop and create opportunities if it is not through education,” he emphasized.
The governor of Ceará, Elmano de Freitas, said that with the incentive program, it will be possible to further advance education at a regional level. “In 2023, the largest participation in the Enem in the country was from Ceará. And our students made history this year, with the best result in our history. 22.5 thousand young people from Ceará entered higher education, leaving public schools in Ceará,” he said.
Expansion
According to the Ministry of Education, new beneficiaries will start receiving the savings in August. EJA students will receive the benefit in September, with the start of the school semester in this type of education.
Created to guarantee school continuity and attendance for low-income young people, the program grants a monthly incentive of R$200 to students, which can be withdrawn at any time, in addition to deposits of R$1,000 at the end of each year completed with approval, which can only be withdrawn from savings after high school graduation.
Currently, the program is aimed at public school students who are beneficiaries of Bolsa Família. Since the first half of 2024, 2.7 million young people have already received the incentive.
