IFC extends $30M to Chile’s Fundación DUOC

Microfinance Focus, Nov. 25, 2009— IFC has extended $30 million to Fundación DUOC, a leading educational institution, for promoting access to affordable professional and technical education for low- and middle-income students in Chile.

Through its network of 12 campuses, DUOC provides a range of technical, vocational, and professional education to 50,000 students. With IFC’s support, the university will expand its facilities and programs, reaching more students with limited access to higher education. The percentage of young Chileans in the 18–23 age group attending higher education institutions is 17–22 percent for poor people and 79 percent for the highest-income bracket.

Guy Ellena, IFC Director for Health and Education, said, “The project will expand the availability of higher education to lower-income segments, which is crucial in Chile. It will also increase access in one of the most densely populated areas of the Santiago Metropolitan region, which has few education opportunities for its mid- to low-income inhabitants.”

In October 2007, IFC worked with DUOC and Banco de Crédito e Inversiones, one of Chile’s largest banks, to introduce the first private student loan program in the country.

IFC’s role in education in Latin America and the Caribbean includes expanding access to quality education for people from all income groups, introducing innovative means of financing and delivering education services, improving quality and standards, helping students and institutions obtain access to financial support, and complementing public financing and provision to achieve public education goals.

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