Education Minister, Raul Vallejo Corral, has accused the
International Monetary Fund (the IMF) and the World Bank of causing a shortage
of teachers across the country. 

Speaking at the United Nations for Education, Science and
the Culture (UNESCO) General Conference, Corral explained that the under-hiring
of teachers in Ecuador since 1997 has resulted in a deficit of 12,000
positions.  This accounts for around 10 percent of the total sum of teachers in
the public system, he said.  

Vallejo Corral argued that the IMF and World Bank have
imposed ¨neoliberal policies¨ in Ecuador and other countries around the world. 
The conditions imposed on Ecuador to repay its foreign debt has resulted in the
under funding of the public school system and a deficit in teachers, he claimed.

Both organizations were charged with being excessively
bureaucratic and of necessitating the implementation of government policies that
critically inhibit rises in teachers' salaries and quantity of jobs offered in
the public school system. 

The regulations set by the IMF and World Bank make economic
ministers slaves to Ecuador's foreign debt.  Meanwhile, education standards in
Ecuador have deteriorated, pushing scholars to leave the country, Vallejo Corral
claimed.

His comments were met with applause from the representatives
of the 193 countries present at the conference.