Asunción, IP Agency.- With the aim of providing more facilities to students and beneficiaries, the Itaipu Scholarship Unit inaugurated its new headquarters in the Las Mercedes neighborhood of Asunción. Opening hours are Monday to Friday, from 07:00 to 12:00; and from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
The new headquarters is located on De la Residenta Street No. 814, almost Perú, next to the National Library, in the aforementioned capital neighborhood, according to Itaipu.
To provide better access to information and services, the Scholarship Unit established telephone numbers (021) 248 1710; (021) 248 1102; and (061) 599 8518. Queries can also be sent to WhatsApp (+595) 974 601 300; (+595) 972 810 600.
Mabel Benítez, coordinator of the Scholarship Unit, explained that the new facilities are designed to efficiently serve the large number of scholarship recipients of the Government of Paraguay Scholarship Program. “Our offices offer a wide range of essential services for students, from administrative procedures to benefits management,” he said.
He added that, currently, Itaipu directly administers 13,000 scholarships, a figure that includes the awards made before the unification of the scholarship program.
Rogelio Sallaberry, Social Responsibility advisor of the Binacional, highlighted that the 2024 call for academic aid was carried out under the unified system, at the initiative of the President of the Republic, Santiago Peña, and with the support of the Paraguayan general director of Itaipu, Justo Zacarías Irun.
In addition to the Entity, the key institutions that joined forces for this purpose are the Yacyretá Binational Entity (EBY), the Ministry of Education and Sciences (MEC), and the National Youth Secretariat (SNJ).
Call 2025
Sallaberry noted that the selection process for new scholarship recipients has the collaboration of the National Institute of Statistics (INE) and the Faculty of Engineering of the National University of Asunción (FIUNA), thus strengthening the inter-institutional team. He noted that this process seeks to standardize the selection criteria among the participating entities.
“Currently, we are in the planning phase for the 2025 call. We are carefully evaluating the 2024 process to identify areas for improvement and define a preliminary calendar for the next selection cycle,” said the advisor.
Silvia Abente, head of the Social Responsibility Initiatives Division, detailed the changes in the scholarship selection process after the unification of the program.
«The four participating institutions have established uniform requirements and selection criteria. We implemented a common exam for all applicants, ensuring equity and a selection based on academic performance,” he noted.
He added that this approach expanded the scope of the program, although they faced challenges in the 2024 call. «We did not reach the goal of 5,000 scholarship recipients (scholarships were awarded to 4,592 students), because some candidates did not pass the selection exam. This prompts us to review our strategies for future calls,” he reflected.
The professional asserted that the commitment of Itaipu and the Government is to bring the program closer to more talented young people with limited resources, for which we constantly work to improve the program and thus be able to maximize its impact on national education.
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