Learning cities in Brazil: Jabotão dos Guararapes joins the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities

Jabotão dos Guararapes is the second learning city in Brazil to join the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities, after the city of Contagem. In taking this step, the city aims to enrich the lives of its residents by adopting learning policies that encourage learning and active citizenship.

Jabotão dos Guararapes is home to 678,346 citizens and is a very important industrial centre in Brazil. Its economy is based primarily on tourism, commerce, the beverage industry and the transportation industry. Its commitment to tackling challenges such as poverty, lack of security and a poor public education system has, in recent years, resulted in the development of local learning policies and initiatives.

Working towards citizen-centred social leadership

The city firmly believes that personal empowerment and active citizenship are central to sustainable social and economic development. To this end, it has implemented a range of new policies and strategies aimed at enhancing learning programmes and promoting greater civic engagement. Among these is a strategic plan to build a learning city, the focus of which will be on political education, decentralization and the creation of institutional mechanisms that empower citizens.

By joining the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities, the city hopes to learn from the knowledge and experience in the Network, particularly in the fields of individual empowerment and social inclusion, and to share its own insights and experiences with other learning cities in Brazil and around the world.