The Colombian government has abandoned its controversial plan to allow private companies to finance public universities, President Juan Manuel Santos announced Tuesday.
The plan led to massive student protests in April. According to the students, the proposed Law 30 would end the autonomy of public universities.
According to a press release on Santos’ website, the bill will now be proposed to Congress without the controversial component.
Following a meeting with representatives of his coalition in Congress, Santos said that “the government accepts that maybe it is not the time to introduce the profit component, that maybe the environment isn’t there.”
In an interview with Caracol Radio, Education Minister Maria Fernanda Campo said that the banning of corporate money into public universities will not affect the government’s plan to increase the number of Colombian youngsters entering universities.
According to the minister, the government will turn to other sources of income to finance higher education.