The South American Line
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parks are designed not to replace the Name of City: Antioquia Name of Country/Region: Colombia Geographic Region: Latin America & Caribbean Population: 6,299,886 (2013) Surface Area: 63.612 km2 Population Density: 99 people / km2
formal educational institutions, but to complement public and private formal and informal educational programs as well as to attract talented and highlyskilled young people and to advance ideals of peace and civic duties along the way. In 2014, the Educational Parks for Youth Project stood out among 259
GDP per capita: USD 6,740
initiatives vying for the 2nd Guangzhou
Title or Slogan of the Initiative: Educational
International Award for Urban Innovation
Parks—A Space for Citizens in the 21st Century
and was eventually selected as one of the
and a New-Style Education through Creative
5 winning initiatives.
space and Programs so as to Develop Local Harmonious Cultural Environment Start Date of the Initiative: June, 2012
Background of the Initiative
End Date of the Initiative: Undecided (estimated by the government to have it
Antioquia is the second largest
completed in December, 2014, but a political,
contributor to Colombia’s GDP; However,
social and economic framework is being built to
the gap in terms of human development
ensure it a part of urban public policies)
and economic growth between Medellin,
Thematic Area: Society Governance / Management Technology Education
the capital of Antioquia and the rest of the department is still obviously wide. The quality of education is one of the fundamental reasons for this inequality. Tests results in the nine sub-regions of Antioquia are well below the national
has resulted in the building of urban
average in math, science and literacy.
infrastructure like Park Libraries in
Approximately half number of the
areas hardest hit by poverty, is a vivid
children in the nine sub-regions drop out
expression of the great importance that the
of schools, and only one tenth of them
local government attaches to improving
are able to receive a higher education.
the skill sets of residents in poverty-
Consequently, territorial development is
stricken communities. The 80 educational
hindered, and migration from sub-regions