Por Redaccion Borja Sánchez, consejero de Ciencia: «This measure is a clear and forceful commitment to the University of Oviedo, while guaranteeing the universal right to education.»
The Government of Asturias has decided to strengthen its support for public education and will fund the tuition for all students starting undergraduate studies at the University of Oviedo next academic year. Additionally, the Principality will open up the possibility for those who do not have a scholarship from the Ministry of Education to complete their entire university career for free if they demonstrate good academic performance.
The Minister of Science, Companies, Training, and Employment, Borja Sánchez, informed the Council of Government today about the drafting of the public price decree that will be in effect from the next academic year and will include, for the first time, free tuition for new incoming students who do not have any other financial aid or scholarship for the same purpose.
This program goes beyond the initially proposed idea and will not establish income thresholds. The goal is to facilitate universal access to higher education and focus on the academic performance of students rather than their economic situation.
The Principality will compensate the University of Oviedo for the cost of these tuitions. In fact, this year’s budget already includes a provision of 2.9 million euros, which will be supplemented in the next budget with the necessary funds to cover all new incoming students, i.e., those enrolling in the first year of a degree at the Asturian academic institution and do not have a scholarship.
«This measure is a clear and forceful commitment to our public university, to the University of Oviedo, while guaranteeing the universal right to education even in university studies,» stated the Minister of Science, Borja Sánchez.
Sánchez explained that it will also be a progressive measure. Thus, it will finance the entire academic career of students who demonstrate good academic performance. The academic year 2025-2026 will be the first in which this university fee waiver will be implemented.
The Government of Asturias thus completes its support for all educational levels, accompanying students from their early months of schooling in the public, regional, and free network of Les Escuelines/As Escolías; in the stages of Early Childhood Education, Primary Education, Compulsory Secondary Education, Baccalaureate, Vocational Training, and now also in higher education at the University of Oviedo.
Likewise, the next public price decree will maintain the freeze on fees for the sixth consecutive year for other university courses, both undergraduate and postgraduate, in line with what has been done in recent years. The Principality is not only one of the regions with the lowest tuition fees but also one of the few that provides free university education.
In 2023, the Government of Asturias reached an agreement to ensure the financial stability of the University of Oviedo. Through a program contract, the academic institution will receive over a billion euros over six years, extendable for four more years. Among other issues, the funding model covers the entire personnel chapter and guarantees a multi-year investment plan.
Representativeness of agricultural organizations
The Government Council has approved the decree that regulates the procedure for agricultural elections, in which the representativeness of professional organizations is determined. The last elections of this kind were held in Asturias in November 2002.
The process will begin with the establishment of an electoral board that will be responsible for publishing and displaying the census, handling claims, delivering the provisional census to rural offices, approving the final census, and appointing the people who will monitor the polling stations.
In addition, the electoral board will ensure the proper development of the procedure, for which it must approve the model of official ballot papers and envelopes, as well as proclaim the list of candidates. The polling stations will be composed of a presidency and two vocal positions, which will be chosen by lottery, just like the substitute persons.
The decree establishes that those engaged in agriculture, livestock farming, or forestry as their main activity will have the right to participate in the elections. Electors must be registered in the corresponding agricultural registers and have their tax domicile in Asturias.
Professional agricultural organizations with a presence in the Principality that wish to participate in the process to determine their representativeness must submit their candidacies within 15 business days after the publication of the call in the Official Gazette of the Principality (Bopa).
Support for job search
The Government has given the green light to the extension of the IV Plan for Reinforcing the Public Employment Service (Sepepa). This measure authorizes a multi-year expenditure of 2.2 million euros to finance the salaries of 49 job counselors working in various offices in the community for a year. The funds will cover the salaries of this temporary staff from April 18 of this year until April 17, 2026.
The Sepepa reinforcement plan aims to ensure that all users receive personalized and tailored attention to their specific characteristics. Among the priority groups of the service are those facing the greatest difficulties in accessing employment: young people, individuals over 45, unemployed individuals who have exhausted their benefits, and those receiving minimum income.
Assistance against addictions
The Government of Asturias has today approved the creation of the Drug and other Addictions Information System of the Principality (Sidro) to facilitate control and epidemiological surveillance. This registry will centralize data on individuals admitted for addiction treatment receiving healthcare or social healthcare in any public, private, or contracted center. This measure will improve prevention policies and responses to substance dependence or gambling addiction.
Last year, 729 individuals started treatment in Asturias: 638 for substance addiction and 101 for other types of addictive behaviors. The protocol for these cases includes phases of detoxification and social integration, in a residential, outpatient, or day center setting.
The Sidro system will provide a comprehensive view of potentially addictive behaviors and help determine if resources and public policies in this field align with the real needs of the population. For example, the tool will facilitate the collection of epidemiological and sociodemographic data and provide essential information for planning care facilities and designing effective treatments. It will also assist in identifying trends in drug consumption and evaluating the effectiveness of interventions.
Advances against the digital divide in rural areas
The Government has approved a budget of 1.8 million euros to promote innovation, research, and digital transformation in municipalities with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants and in associations of municipalities with a population below that figure, with the aim of reducing the digital divide in rural areas.
The technology dynamization services facilitate citizens’ access to information and communication technologies and provide support to various collectives and social agents in the municipal sphere.
Furthermore, these services will contribute to the implementation of e-government in rural areas.
Appointments in the Sespa
The Government Council has authorized two appointments for the Health Service of the Principality. Thus, María Álvarez Rea will be the new Secretary-General, and Óscar Veiras will assume the position of Director of Health Care and Evaluation.
María Álvarez Rea was previously a lawyer at the Legal Service of the Principality. With a degree in Law from the University of Oviedo, she has been a civil servant in the Superior Administrative Corps since 2004. She is also the head of the Studies Center at the Bar Association of Oviedo and a lecturer in the University Master’s Degree in Advocacy.
On the other hand, Óscar Veiras previously held the position of Deputy Director of Primary Care and Public Health at Sespa. A specialist in Family and Community Medicine, he has been the manager of Primary Care and Director of Health Care and Public Health in Health Area V, as well as the head of studies at the Multiprofessional Family and Community Care Teaching Unit, among other positions.
FUENTE