During the first 2025 meeting of G-4 rectors, which is made up of the rectors of the four largest public universities in the country: the Universidad Industrial de Santander, the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNAL), the Universidad de Antioquia and the Universidad del Valle, it was concluded that the goal of public universities and institutions is to reach a funding of 1% of GDP.
The meeting focused on the construction of commissions and spaces for dialogue on the quality, coverage, infrastructure and financing of higher education institutions (HEI), and also on continuing to work for the territories and for Colombia in depth.
The rector of the Universidad Industrial de Santander, Hernán Porras Díaz, points out that we must speak objectively as a university, and for this reason commissions have been created that will lead the elaboration of both quantitative and qualitative studies that will allow us to make reflections to confront them with those of the Ministries and society in general, making a faithful diagnosis of what is happening.
“If we manage to get the country to allocate 1% of the GDP to public universities, we would certainly have peace of mind and we would no longer have to discuss these problems, but we would be able to sit down and talk to develop and build the country,” says Professor Porras.
For his part, the rector of the UNAL, Leopoldo Múnera Ruiz, assures that they are working to take stock of the Comprehensive Coverage Plan (PIC), to see how it has worked and what corrections or adjustments should be made, since there is a budgetary concern, and it is there where the goal of reaching 1% of the gross domestic product (GDP) to finance public higher education gains strength.
“We have agreed that this horizon of progressiveness in the increase of funding is something that the 4 universities gathered here will defend. In addition, we have reflected on the transit and integration between public higher education and secondary education, and on a better administration of welfare resources and cooperation among universities, taking into account that we collaborate with the State University System”, says Professor Múnera.
In turn, Guillermo Murillo Vargas, rector of the Universidad del Valle, explains that the meeting is important to review the issues that are part of the levels of complexity that the institutions manage, since they have a long history and high scientific production, as well as renowned academic programs and one of the largest student populations in the country.
“For example, coverage is very important, but it is not enough, because there is nothing we can do to improve it if the dropout rate continues to increase, or infrastructure and costs. We are coordinating the creation of study commissions on these issues that will allow us to sit down and talk with the Ministries of Education and Finance, and reach consensus on how to develop these initiatives for higher education,” said the rector of Universidad del Valle.
Along the same lines, John Jairo Arboleda, rector of the University of Antioquia, points out that the HEIs have a great responsibility with public higher education, and also common issues that go along the same route of proposals for the national government and society, which seek to reach the territories, those regions outside the departmental capitals.
“The budgetary issue is under discussion, the reform to articles 86 and 87 of Law 30 of 1992, and the enormous need to adjust the resources that the Government transfers to public universities, so that they are in line with the real expenses of the institutions. Higher education is expensive, especially high quality education, so research, extension and educational collaboration must be strengthened”, assures Rector Arboleda.
It should be noted, according to Rector Múnera, that the country’s contribution to universities is 0.45% of GDP, one of the lowest in Latin America, so the institutions are in a difficult moment that requires an increase in line with educational needs. Thus it is not only a concern for the future of higher education, but also for the country’s scientific research, and the budget allocated to it.
“Since 1992 we universities have grown, even above the resources and costs that this growth has implied, and the funding formula has remained unchanged; in practical terms we are receiving the same money we received in those years, but the university that was financed with Law 30 is a very different one from the current one,” indicates the rector of the University of Antioquia.
Regarding the challenges that are part of this discussion, the rector of the Universidad del Valle affirms that of the 80 years that his institution is celebrating in 2025, the last 40 have been destined to work strongly in the territories, and this has other implications, since it means taking quality higher education to places where there is not enough infrastructure, and health and medicine programs sometimes do not have a hospital equipped to make agreements.
Finally, the four rectors, with Rector Porras Díaz as spokesman, sent a message of confidence to the university community of the institutions gathered and to society in general, because they are working to provide the best possible quality and offer, accompanying the solution of these challenges always with the approach that universities are territories of peace, and that is what is sought to reach every corner of the country.
