The Americas region is made up of large, young populations and growing economies, and has a generation of popularly elected leaders with a strong commitment to equity, access to justice and the eradication of poverty. Our global expertise in key sectors such as education, alongside our network of local staff, provides us with a sensitive understanding of the challenges within the region and enables us to support effective and sustainable change.
Improving the quality of English teacher training
In the last five years there has been a dramatic increase in demand from governments for in-service training schemes to improve the quality of English teaching – at primary, secondary and tertiary levels, as well as for lifelong learning and for professional and vocational education and training. We are creating innovative solutions to respond to this demand.
Our remote English teaching project in Uruguay, Ceibal en Inglés, will reach 120,000 primary school students in the country by 2015. The project draws on our experience of working with remote teachers in Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, the Philippines and Uruguay itself. We have partnered with the Colombian Ministry of Education for over a decade, working together on the National English Language Policy Consultancy project. Our national standards for English as a foreign language are used by 90 per cent of primary and secondary public education institutions in the country.
Working with civil society
Through the Human Rights and Democracy in Jamaica project we are helping to increase awareness of and access to human rights for disenfranchised Jamaicans. The project is a response to the high rates of crime and violence and mounting cases of vigilante-type justice, resulting in the deaths of alleged perpetrators. The project will improve the capacity and democratic role of civil society organisations through capacity building and grant funding.
Our offices
We have offices in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela and the USA.