Ecuador hosted a regional event on March 26 to discuss educational leadership from an intercultural perspective, according to the Ministry of Education. The event took place at the Emilio Uzcátegui Auditorium and brought together representatives from the Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture (OEI), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Ecuador’s Vice Presidency, the Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture (MINEDEC), and the Secretariat for Intercultural Bilingual Education and Ethnoeducation (SEIBE).
The meeting aimed to share key findings from the Global Education Monitoring Report 2024/2025 (GEM Report) and the Regional Report for Latin America. Both documents analyze how school leadership can help transform education systems and strengthen democracy.
Attendees included José Luis Torres, Vice Minister of Education; Carla Arellano, Secretary General of Ecuador’s Vice Presidency; Juan Manuel Mashinkiash, Technical Undersecretary for Intercultural Bilingual Education and Ethnoeducation; Sara Jaramillo, Director of OEI’s National Office; and Tatiana Villegas, UNESCO representative in Ecuador. In his remarks, Torres thanked participants as well as international cooperation partners. Mashinkiash said it is important to reflect on educational leadership within Ecuador’s intercultural education system.
Nicolás Reyes from UNESCO and Yadhira Espinoza from OEI presented results from both reports. They explained that the Regional Report was produced through strategic collaboration between OEI and UNESCO based on rigorous analysis including case studies in several countries. The report also drew on a regional survey conducted by OEI across 18 Latin American education ministries about regulatory frameworks, selection processes, and efforts to promote distributed leadership as a driver for educational change.
The event emphasized understanding educational leadership in intercultural contexts while recognizing Ecuador’s cultural diversity as central to building more relevant, inclusive quality education. According to the GEM Report presented at the event, school leadership is considered one of the most influential internal factors affecting student learning outcomes.
School administrators and teachers attended sessions where they discussed experiences related to challenges and opportunities in strengthening educational leadership throughout Ecuador.
