President Bukele Announces 50,000 New Scholarships at Massive Youth Event

A crowd of tens of thousands gathered in San Salvador's national stadium for an event called "El Salvador Renace," where President Nayib Bukele announced a scholarship initiative for 50,000 public-high-school graduates. The scholarships will support university degrees, technical training, vocational courses and selected study-abroad programs. To finance the scholarships, Bukele signed a $100 million agreement with the Inter-American Development Bank and cited ongoing collaborations with the World Bank and the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean for wider education reforms.

He also revealed a new education investment budget of over $3 billion a year, representing more than 8% of the country's GDP. The plan includes providing computers, internet connectivity, teacher training and new curricula focused on technology, robotics and artificial intelligence, especially for remote areas. Bukele framed the initiative as a turning point for a nation that once struggled with extreme violence, urging students to seize the opportunity with discipline and effort.