The government of Luis Lacalle Pou presented its Rendering of Accounts corresponding to the upcoming period, and immediately jumped out that there will be no budget increase for the University of the Republic (UDELAR) or for the Hospital de Clínicas, unleashing criticism from the academic and scientists, in addition to the increase of just US$26 million for the development of science and technology, described as meager by many.
The Broad Front, which aims to return to the national government in 2024, will discuss Accountability in its base committees this Friday, according to the party’s president, Fernando Pereira.
“The Broad Front aims to be the government in 2024, but its primary objective is to improve people’s lives now,” Pereira stressed in a radio interview. M24and recalled that more than 100,000 people eat in the popular pots that have been working since the Lacalle Pou government arrived, in a situation exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
For his part, the rector of UDELAR, Rodrigo Arim, assured that “there is a scenario of restrictions and adjustment of the works that the University had planned in the interior of the country” after learning the news that the government will not increase the budget for this educational institution.
In the same medium, he stated that, due to the inflationary index, there is a deterioration of the UDELAR budget and a reduction of the global budget of 3% is added to it”, as a result of the elimination without compensation of the additional Solidarity Fund.
“The good news that Uruguay has more students at Udelar, is in contrast to the number of works and teachers and officials that can be hired to serve these students, which is being reduced significantly,” lamented the academic, who understands that “the budget freeze itself and a reduction if the Solidarity Fund materializes, will be affecting the quality of what we do in terms of teaching and research with a contribution to Uruguayan society.”
From the university entity they also see with concern the deterioration of the real salary of university workers. “We have made a comparison even after the pandemic with salaries in the region and UDELAR appears to be quite behind,” he commented.
If academics do not have access to competitive and reasonable wages and working conditions, Arim warned, “they will most likely end up joining another university outside the country. It has happened to us at different times, in the 90s it was very clear, we managed to revert in the 21st century and Uruguayans and foreigners came to carry out their academic activity at UDELAR”.
