A historic win for Colombia`s student movement

A system that was not working

Colombia’s higher education system has long been underfunded, and access to education has largely reflected class divisions and the historical marginalization and exclusion of Indigenous peoples and Afro-Colombians.

Colombia needed reform — and students have been among those pushing it forward.

At the core of the problem was a more than 30-year-old law regulating higher education, which the student movement has fought to change for decades.

Students at the negotiating table

When the government launched the process of developing a new higher education law in 2024–2025, student organizations were invited into the national dialogue. The result was a bill that includes, among other measures:

• increased and more stable public funding
• clearer recognition of education as a public right, not a market commodity
• a new funding system based on the real costs of education

Authorities describe the reform as a turning point — and a direct response to long-standing demands from the student movement.

Years of effort led to a historic victory

That student organizations were able to sit at the negotiating table as serious and legitimate actors did not happen by chance. It is the result of many years of strategic organizing and political advocacy— efforts that ultimately made this historic victory possible.

Through tireless engagement, the movement has become both academically strong and well organized. Contributions from Norwegian students through SAIH have been part of the long-term support.

With support from SAIH, the Observatorio de Políticas de Educación Superior de Colombia was established in 2023. The observatory is run by ACEU and has provided knowledge, analysis, and evidence that have served as important inspiration for the Minister of Education in the reform process.

At the national level, ACEU and ANDES have for years been among the most important actors in the pupil and student movement. Through national student meetings, political platforms, and broad mobilization, they have ensured that the student voice remains clear and legitimate in public debate.

Through SAIH’s network, the organizations have also gained international support and visibility. This solidarity has strengthened their position in dialogue with the authorities.

A step closer to the right to education

As Colombia now adopts a new higher education law, the student movement’s imprint is clear — in the analyses, in the demands, and in the bill itself.

The story of ACEU and ANDES shows how long-term support can be translated into political influence. SAIH’s contribution is not about individual projects, but about strengthening democratic movements that shape the future for millions of young people.

This is what SAIH’s work ultimately is about: making it possible for students themselves to be the driving force for change in their own society.