Mexico and Belize celebrate agreement of 140 scholarships

One hundred and forty Belizeans have received scholarships from CONALEP in Mexico as part of an educational and technical cooperation agreement between the two countries. Today marked twenty years since the signing of that agreement, which has had great benefits for both Belize and Mexico. In celebration, the cooperation has been extended and a ceremony was held at the IT-VET this afternoon, where tokens of appreciation were presented to the Mexican representatives, including Ambassador Mario Velazquez Suarez and CONALEP Director General, Wilfrido Perea Curiel.  C.E.O. in the Ministry of Education and Youth, David Leacock, also spoke on some of the benefits to Belize over years.

David Leacock, C.E.O., Ministry of Education and Youth

David Leacock

“Today we celebrate the twentieth anniversary of this technical cooperation which was signed in 1991. Over the years, it has evolved from strength to strength. Since its inception, the agreement has encompassed technical assistance in the area of curriculum development and training and the development of technical instructors. Initially, the then Center for Employment training Belize, now the Institute of Technical Vocational Education benefited tremendously from the agreement.  It introduced the component that most of us have come to know it by today of the scholarships for students from Belize to attend CONALEP and pursue studies in technical fields. Today these scholarships continue to be a major component of the agreement. As it currently stands, fifteen scholarships are offered annually in a number of fields relevant to our economy.”

Mario Velazquez

Mario Velazquez, Ambassador of Mexico to Belize

“The success of the cooperation is witnessed by both groups. Now satisfied with the goals achieved, new forms of cooperation were discussed and ways of broadening the current programs were negotiated. Delegation led by Mr. Wilfrido Perea, General Director of CONALEP and Mr. Patrick Faber, the Minister of Education and Youth, gathered this morning with this purpose in hopes of a fruitful outcome.”

Wilfrido Perea Curiel, Director General, CONALEP

Wilfrido Perea Curiel

“It has been a very happy, happy marriage. And the most important thing I can tell you about it is that we have just signed another twenty years of marriage so it’s not bad. It shows that it has worked and it’s very meaningful for us that this agreement has a very nice perspective because we just discussed in the morning some new possibilities.”