10:00 a.m. Welcome and opening remarks. Led by Jaime Saavedra, World Bank Director of Human Development for Latin America and the Caribbean.

10:05 a.m. Report presentation: “Where Paths Divide: Transforming Secondary Education in Latin America and the Caribbean,” delivered by Carolina Lopez and Francisco Haimovich, co-authors of the report and World Bank economists.

10:30 a.m. Panel discussion moderated by Andreas Blom, World Bank Manager for Education in Latin America and the Caribbean: 

    • Tania Rodríguez Mora, Undersecretary for Upper Secondary Education, Secretariat of Public Education of Mexico.

    • David Evans, Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development.

    • Alfredo Vota, Undersecretary of Educational Policy and Innovation of the Ministry of Human Capital of Argentina.

10:50 a.m. Q&A with the audience

10:58 a.m. Closing remarks by Andreas Blom

11:00 a.m. End of event

Jaime Saavedra, Director of Human Development for Latin America and the Caribbean,  World Bank Group

Jaime Saavedra is the Regional Director of Human Development for Latin America and the Caribbean of the World Bank. Previously, he led the institution's Global Education Practice and was Global Director for Poverty Reduction. Between 2013 and 2016 he served as Minister of Education of Peru. Dr. Saavedra holds a Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Universidad Católica of Peru. He has also held teaching positions at Universidad Católica of Peru, Universidad del Pacifico, and Harvard University. He has been the Executive Director of Grupo de Análisis para el Desarrollo (GRADE), a leading think tank in Peru. He is currently a board member of Teach for All, the Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel, and the International Institute for Educational Planning for UNESCO.

Andreas Blom, Manager, World Bank Education Global Practice, LAC Region

Andreas Blom is Manager in the World Bank’s Education Global Practice, responsible for the Latin American and Caribbean region. Andreas joined the World Bank in 2003 as an Education Economist in LAC and has since worked across Latin America, South Asia, and Africa on expanding access to education and improving learning, skills, and employment outcomes. He has authored studies on higher education financing, quality of education, 21st-century skills, and science, technology, and innovation. He holds an MA in Development Economics from the University of Aarhus, Denmark.

Alfredo Vota, Undersecretary of Educational Policy and Innovation, Ministry of Human Capital of Argentina

Alfredo Vota holds a degree in Sociology from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), and a Master's in Education from the European University of Santander. He is an educator and specialist in Educational Management and Transformation Strategies, and serves as a professor at the University of San Andrés, where he teaches the Good Innovation Practices Innovation seminar.

He previously served as Director General of the Dante Alighieri Educational Pole, Colegio Hölter Natur, and Colegio Euskal Echea. He has coordinated projects at IIPE UNESCO and UdeSA (University of San Andrés), and served as International Director of Training for Sistema UNO, Santillana. He has also worked as a consultant and advisor for organizations including the World Bank and the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI).

Tania Rodríguez Mora, Undersecretary for Upper Secondary Education, Secretariat of Public Education of Mexico

Tania Hogla Rodríguez Mora holds a degree in Sociology from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and a PhD in Social Science with a specialization in Sociology from El Colegio de México. She also completed an International Diploma in "Feminism, Development and Democracy" at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Sciences and Humanities at UNAM.

From 2020 to 2024, she served as Rector of the Universidad Autónoma de la Ciudad de México (UACM), an institution where she has been a founding professor and researcher since 2001. Previously, from 2011 to 2013, she served as Coordinator of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at the same university, overseeing seven undergraduate programs and two graduate programs. She is a member of various academic and editorial boards, and has published works on Latin American politics, democratization, and higher education. Since October 1, 2024, she serves as Undersecretary of Upper Secondary Education at the Secretariat of Public Education.

David Evans, Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development

David Evans is a senior fellow and the director of the global education and child well-being program at the Center for Global Development. His recent research covers education, poverty, early childhood development, and gender. Previously, he was the principal economic advisor for the social sector at the Inter-American Development Bank and, before that, a lead economist at the World Bank. He co-authored the World Bank’s World Development Report 2018: Learning to Realize Education’s Promise. In the past, Evans has evaluated education, early child development, agriculture, health, training, tax, and social safety net programs in Brazil, Côte d’Ivoire, the Gambia, Haiti, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania. He has a PhD in Economics.

Carolina Lopez,  Research Economist, DEC-RG

Carolina Lopez is a Research Economist in the Development Economics Vice Presidency at the World Bank, based in Washington, D.C. Her work focuses on education, human capital, and behavioral economics, with a particular interest in how people’s beliefs shape their behavior and welfare. She leads research on the use of AI to improve learning, including Eligiendo Mi Camino, an AI-powered math tutoring and career guidance program in Peru. Her research combines randomized controlled trials with administrative data. Before joining the World Bank, she was a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School. She holds a Bachelor’s in Economics from Universidad Nacional de Salta, a Master’s in Economics from Universidad Nacional de La Plata in Argentina, and a Ph.D. in Economics from Brown University.

Francisco Haimovich, Senior Economist, World Bank Education Global Practice, LAC Region

Francisco Haimovich is a Senior Economist in the Education Global Practice for Latin America and the Caribbean at the World Bank, based in Washington, D.C. He has worked to strengthen education systems across more than 15 countries, in contexts ranging from fragile, low-capacity settings to high-income countries. His recent work focuses on human capital development and education reform, with a strong emphasis on evidence-based policymaking. His research on early warning systems for dropout prevention has informed the design of similar programs across the region. He is also a coauthor of At a Crossroads: Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean. Before joining the Education Global Practice, Francisco worked in the World Bank Poverty Reduction and Equity Unit and Human Development Sector Unit, as well as at the Inter-American Development Bank. Earlier in his career, he was a researcher at CEDLAS, Universidad Nacional de La Plata. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from UCLA..