Princeton, New Jersey, Feb 25 (EFE).- Peru’s president on Saturday stressed the need for Latin America to overcome its socio-political challenges, saying doing so would require an educational and technological revolution over the next 15 years.
Pedro Pablo Kuczynski made the remarks in a speech to faculty and alumni at Princeton University, where he earned a master’s degree in the early 1960s.
“We have 15 years. That’s it. If we haven’t turned the page on this education and technology revolution in 15 years, we’ll not fade away but we’ll slowly stagnate,” the 78-year-old head of state warned.
Kuczynski lamented that Latin America had fallen behind from a technological and educational standpoint, a problem that he said was exacerbated by a steadily aging population.
He also pointed to other woes affecting the region, including corruption and a weak rule of law, though adding that there were some exceptions.
In his address at Alexander Hall, Kuczynski also lamented the lack of integration in Latin America apart from initiatives such as the Pacific Alliance trade bloc, which includes Peru.
Kuczynski’s speech came a day after he met at the White House with the president of the United States, Donald Trump, for talks focused on the situation in Peru and the challenges facing Latin America in general.
Referring to the US, Kuczynski said only that the country was undergoing enormous change in the wake of Trump’s surprise victory in the November presidential election, though adding that the precise direction of those changes remains an unknown.