The Legislature of the City of Buenos Aires unanimously approved the mandatory three-year-old program, establishing that the state system must offer universal and free early education from 45 days of life.
The regulation, driven by legislator Manuela Thourte (Ciudadanos Unidos/UCR), extends the age for compulsory schooling, which previously started at four years. The expansion of Early Childhood Schools is set as the central focus of this new educational policy. The city’s Executive Power will be responsible for adapting the educational network to ensure that every family that requests it has a spot available.
Additionally, the text provides for a territorial reorganization of the educational offer in order to reduce disparities in coverage between different neighborhoods and to strengthen state presence in areas that face greater access difficulties, particularly in the south of the city. Thourte stated: “With this, what we want to guarantee is the same start for all kids; for them to be able to attend kindergarten means quality education for all.”
The new law establishes that the obligation is a shared responsibility between families and the State, ensuring attendance from the three-year-old program. Moreover, universality implies that any family has the right to access a state spot for children from 45 days of life.
The initial level must include content related to oral skills, early literacy, sciences, play, artistic expression, physical activity, and motor development. It also aims to eliminate social, physical, linguistic, and didactic barriers that may limit access to learning.
Those children currently attending Early Childhood Centers or Child Development Centers will maintain continuity in their educational trajectories. The responsible agencies will have 180 days from the enactment of the law to implement the necessary measures.
Another objective of the law is to organize the diversity of existing institutions, which includes Nuclei Kindergartens, Integrative, Common, Maternal, and Early Childhood Schools, thus progressing towards a unified network of Early Childhood Schools with continuous pedagogical trajectories from the earliest ages. Furthermore, transparency mechanisms regarding the allocation of spots will be incorporated, with the annual publication of enrollment results.
Thourte highlighted the positive impact that the implementation of the mandatory four-year-old program had on increasing enrollment: “I know the importance of making the three-year program mandatory because when the four-year-old program was made mandatory in the country, the number of kids attending four-year programs changed a lot.”
The rationale for the law is related to the decrease in birth rates in the City of Buenos Aires, which has fallen from 42,700 annual births in 2014 to 21,400 in 2024. This demographic change has reduced the pressure on educational vacancies, which previously led to numerous complaints. Enrollment in the five-year program has also decreased by 25% since 2015, with projections estimating an enrollment of around 20,000 students by 2030.
Three-year program attendance already exceeds 88%, reaching 91.2% when including early childhood centers, according to estimates from the 2022 Census. Coverage in the two-year program is 64%, although differences between communes are observed. Thourte concluded by mentioning the support received during the vote, emphasizing the importance of Buenos Aires positioning itself as the first jurisdiction in the country to guarantee a spot for every three-year-old child.
Source: www.infobae.com
