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(Last updated: 26 Mar 2008)
Trends and opportunities
The market
Brazil is the fifth country in the world, and the largest in Latin America, with an area of 8,511,965 km². Brazil encompasses almost half of the South American continent, bordering every country on the continent other than Chile and Ecuador.
Brazil is the world’s 11th largest economy (Source: IMF 2005) with a GDP of over US$1.5 trillion growing at a rate of 2.4 per cent (Source: CIA 2005).
Public expenditure in education in Brazil comprises 12 per cent of total government expenditures and 4.2 per cent as a percentage of GDP. Literacy amongst Brazilians over the age of 15 is 86.4 per cent (Source: UNESCO 2005).
Overview of the Brazilian education system
Public and private education systems coexist in Brazil. While private institutions may charge students fees, public institutions must offer education free of charge.
Brazil’s education system involves cooperation between the Federal, State and Municipal governments. The Federal Government, represented by the Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), organises and finances the country’s educational system and gives technical assistance for the development of the educational system at other government levels. It prioritises the compulsory education years, which are the first eight years of school, called Basic Education. The federal system is basically responsible for universities.
The education system is divided into:
- Pre-school and day care centres for children three to seven years old
- Eight years of fundamental schooling or primary school for children seven years or older
- Secondary schooling includes the last three years of school before entering the workforce or continuing tertiary education
- Higher education – universities and other educational institutions for postgraduate and technical (similar to VET) courses
Most Brazilians study English at school as part of the general secondary school curriculum, but because the content and language enforcement is weak, especially in government schools, there are many private schools for English as a second language. Speaking English is generally considered essential in order to progress both academically and professionally, and Brazilian parents will often sacrifice certain luxuries in order to pay for their children’s English lessons.
Private-owned companies are also beginning to invest in internal employee training, either sending their young executives abroad for specific tertiary courses (such as MBAs) or contracting those that already have a specialised degree.
In the last eight years the Brazilian Government has become aware of the social problems caused by a weak educational system and standards, and for this reason education has become one of the main priorities on the national social agenda.
Opportunities
Australia’s engagement with the Brazilian education and training sector is dominated by the English language sector, and to a lesser extent VET.
Higher education enrolments have show only marginal growth, with the interim 2005 figures suggesting this pattern will continue. There is a fairly widespread perception among Australian education providers and Brazilian education agents that there is only a small market in Brazil for Australian higher education.
Research among visitors to the 2005 ExpoBelta education fair in Brazil also suggests that the pessimism about Australia’s higher education potential is not entirely warranted. Of almost 15,000 visitors to ExpoBelta, 78 per cent said that they were interested in overseas higher education courses. Despite Australia’s minimal presence at the event, 30 per cent said that Australia was an attractive destination, ranking closely behind the UK (34 per cent), Canada (37 per cent) and the USA (41 per cent).
VET enrolments have grown steadily year to year, with the 2005 annual figures likely to the top 2,200 students, again suggesting that this is becoming an even more important part of the overall Latin American market for Australian providers. Australian VET enrolments from Brazil significantly outstrip those seen in the UK and Canada. The growth in the Brazilian VET sector is driven by students studying for diplomas and advanced diplomas, although strong growth can also been seen in Certificate III courses.
Brazilian education institutions and the government are searching for international cooperation in order to modernise the Brazilian education system. Such agreements also lead towards improving Brazil’s technological capacity and development. Divisions of the Brazilian Government linked to the Ministry of Education and individual universities have signed various bilateral contracts promoting cultural and educational cooperation between countries/institutions.
There are also opportunities in Brazil for Australian institutes to enter the e-learning services sector for English language, technical courses and even tertiary degrees. An increasing number of local companies are investing in this study format.
Distance education via online study is gaining status and is now perceived by Brazilian companies as more than just a way of saving costs. It is increasingly being seen as a means of increasing sales, keeping good professionals in the company and offering better services to the clients. Some companies are even offering e-learning solutions to business partners and clients or exploring the profitable potential of distance learning as a service sale. The immediate result is that the departments responsible for training are becoming strategic assets for the company’s business.
Approximately 70 per cent of companies still reimburse expenses for distance learning, while 49 per cent create their own content for training employees. Only five per cent of the corporations do not invest in e-learning. Among the reasons for this is the sense that human capital will be the great competitive differential in the 21st century. Companies are also seeing the potential offer distance learning services to third parties, transforming a necessity into a profit opportunity.
(Source: Australian Education International. Market Research on the Education Sector of Latin America, research undertaken by Blue Moon Researching Group)
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