Home to a multi-ethnic population
Bluefields is home to a multi-ethnic population marked by cultural syncretism. Education is provided in Spanish, Creole, Miskito and Rama. The city’s economic activities centre on fishing, agriculture, tourism, construction, commerce and the service sector.
Vision and Strategy
We believe that lifelong learning is key to addressing the challenges associated with serving a multi-ethnic and multicultural society that is particularly affected by climate change and natural disasters. To find solutions to the social and environmental problems it faces, the city must have in place an intercultural education system that addresses the specific characteristics of indigenous peoples and Afro-descendants, as well as initiatives that foster intergenerational and multi-ethnic dialogue.
Policies, Plan and Implementation
Sustainability and health
- Bluefields prioritizes education and health in its Municipal Development Plan 2020–2030, in accordance with the Caribbean Coast Development Strategy and the National Human Development Plan. Initiatives focus on community training, health and environmental awareness, and emergency responses to natural disasters such as hurricanes.
Equity and inclusion
- The Regional Autonomous Education System (SEAR) incorporates multiculturalism, multi-ethnicity, multilingualism, gender equity, scientific knowledge, ancestral knowledge and oral history into the learning process. Learning programmes are implemented through community child development centres, basic education facilities, universities, rural schools and adult education centres, with staff trained in indigenous languages.
Decent work and entrepreneurship
- In cooperation with the National Technological Institute, the city has implemented the Municipal School of Trades, Technology and Tourism to help young people, women, men and people with disabilities to develop entrepreneurial skills, and to foster innovation and creativity by rescuing traditional trades.
Good practices
Health and sustainability
- 83 school gardens have been established in rural areas of the municipality of Bluefields through the flagship PINE programme (Comprehensive School Nutrition Programme).
Digital education
- Five ICT classrooms have been set up in regular secondary schools, each equipped with one tablet per student and one computer per administration.
Innovation Rally and Hackathon
- This initiative focuses on solving social problems through digital entrepreneurship, and promotes skills relating to budgets, prototypes, and short-, medium- and long-term solutions. The initiative is both publicly accessible and of benefit to the community.
A learning system articulated with institutions and social sectors is fundamental to successfully facing the challenges of interculturality, the environment, and social inclusion for good quality of life.
Mr Gustavo Adolfo Castro Jo
Mayor
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