Criteria to be considered for funding of higher education in Venezuela

Abstract

The growing economic inability in Latin-American states to finance public universities, has positioned public funding as a common theme in almost all targeted reforms of higher education. Insufficient public resources are compromising the effectiveness of academic management in public universities, without knowing the key economic issues for strengthening public sector policies. This essay is intended to: propose a new system of criteria for funding of higher education; based on the analysis of the Venezuelan experience in allocations of public resources used to finance higher education institutions during the 2000-2015 period. It is a documentary research. The proposal contains seven (7) integrating elements that would lead to the establishment of a funding policy for higher education. Finally, it is suggested that the State exceeds the old negotiated "incremental “schemes, "rigid" budget formulas and deferred funding allocations, which fail to identify basic needs and costs associated to the academic management of higher education institutions, in terms of promoting efficiency, equity and decentralization in public funding for the Venezuelan higher education system.