Nearly 11 million people in 30 nations have learned to read and write with the Cuban program.
Cuban program. Illustrative image taken from Prensa Latina

By María Josefina Arce

Cuba's literacy method "Yo sí puedo" (Yes, I can) continues to make a difference in the world.

Now the good news comes from Brazil. In the municipality of Maricá, in the Metropolitan Region of the state of Rio de Janeiro, more than a thousand Brazilians, including adults and young people, learned to read and write.

In the South American giant, some 100 thousand people from several regions have been taught to read and write with this program, born as an initiative of the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz (1926-2016).

 Its antecedents are in the literacy campaign developed by radio in Haiti by Cuban educators.

It has been successfully employed in several Latin American and Caribbean nations. Thus, the implementation of this method in Venezuela made it possible to teach three million 500 thousand Venezuelans to read and write.

In 2005, UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, granted this sister country the status of "Territory Free of Illiteracy".

This status was also granted to Bolivia in 2008 and to Nicaragua a year later, thanks to the use of the Cuban method, described as economical and efficient by international organizations such as UNESCO.

But "Yes, I can" has gone beyond the borders of our region and reached distant geographical areas. That is the case of Australia, where aboriginal communities have benefited and the program is gaining ground every day since its use began in 2012.

Likewise, it has been implemented in New Zealand and other parts of Oceania; in several African nations and even in Europe. The Spanish city of Seville lived that experience and had a great acceptance among the illiterate population.

Adapted to different social realities and languages, "Yo sí puedo" has transformed the lives of numerous humble people who had not had the possibility of accessing education or were forced to work from an early age to help their families.

It is also an inclusive method, which does not discriminate against any citizen willing to learn, since it has versions for the blind, the deaf and individuals with slight intellectual problems.

To date, nearly 11 million people in 30 nations have learned to read and write with the Cuban program, which in 2006 received the King Sejong Prize, awarded by UNESCO.

Undoubtedly, "Yo sí puedo" is Cuba's humble contribution to literacy in the world and has meant for many a new perspective in life.