• University branch will encourage the professional development of young people from Apurímac who are interested in mining

Lima, June 23, 2022. Given the actual education infrastructure gap of PEN 5.917 billion nationwide, especially in high Andean regions, Challhuahuacho, a district of Apurímac, has requested Universidad Nacional San Antonio Abad de Cusco (UNSAAC) to open a branch for the thousands of young people who would like to work in mining to have access to first-class higher education.

“The mayor of Challhuahuacho has expressed his wish for us to open a branch of our university there, as it is a mining district and it is an opportunity to build a professional mining school, as well as an environmental school, which is in tune with the needs for higher education among the population,” pointed out Eleazar Crucinta, rector of UNSAAC, at Rumbo a PERUMIN – Southeastern Peru Edition. 

He highlighted the fact that UNSAAC is committed to the professional training of people interested in the extractive industry through its schools of mining engineering, metallurgical engineering, and geological engineering, which, he said, have quality infrastructure and highly trained faculty, and have been equipped with modern tools.

“Some years ago, few students applied to study mining engineering; however, lately there has been a larger number of applicants, which means that the population now regard the mining sector in a different way. Therefore, it is important for academia to engage in understanding and meeting the demand of the communities,” he expressed.

 Absence of mining policy

While he underscored the fact that Peru is a mining country, he also criticized the lack of a long-term mining policy that gives priority to upright officials at the three government levels, offers predictability to private investments, and promotes a peaceful environment, understanding, and joint work with the communities, civil society, and the State.

“We need a unanimous decision on the part of the Executive and Legislative branches of government to parallelly boost mining and meet the demands of the population, and not only with an economic approach, but also with a development approach, where we, scholars, participate first-hand,” stressed Eleazar Crucinta, rector of UNSAAC.

Finally, he warned about the fact that, if the authorities fail to become more attuned with the true sentiment of rural citizens, social conflicts involving mining will continue to escalate, which could balk the social and economic development of mining regions and society as a whole.