The Ministerio de Cultura participated on March 16 in ceremonies marking the start of the 2026 school year in the regions of Huánuco and Loreto. Minister Soraya Altabás Kajatt attended the event at institution N.° 32508 Víctor Reyes Roca in Naranjillo, Luyando district, Leoncio Prado province, where a new school building was also inaugurated with local authorities, teachers, parents, and students present.
During the ceremony, Altabás Kajatt delivered more than 300 books to the school’s library. The collection included classic works, children’s stories, and specialized texts aimed at strengthening reading spaces and learning opportunities for students.
Altabás Kajatt said it is important to begin the academic year by promoting access to knowledge, reading, and recognition of Peru’s cultural diversity. “In all of Peru today more than six million students begin classes. We want to start this school year with a simple but powerful idea: United we learn better. We learn better when teachers teach with dedication, when families accompany this process and when the school and community work together,” she said.
She also highlighted that students should have appropriate educational materials. She pointed out that free educational resources are being distributed nationwide, including materials in indigenous languages for Intercultural Bilingual Education schools as well as Braille-adapted materials. The minister further emphasized Huánuco’s cultural richness: “Huánuco is a land full of history and cultural diversity, where languages such as Quechua, Shipibo-Konibo, Asháninka, Yanesha and Kakataibo are spoken among others. That diversity is a wealth we must know about, respect and value.”
In Loreto region’s Requena province, Vice Minister Percy Barranzuela Bombilla took part in a similar ceremony at San Juan Bautista La Salle Public Secondary School. He encouraged pride in cultural heritage: “Be proud of your ancestors, your knowledge, your grandparents and your language. Peru needs citizens who value their culture and their diversity. From the Ministry of Culture we promote that this beginning of the school year takes place with an intercultural perspective with respect for the 55 indigenous or native peoples and their 48 languages,” he said.
Regional governors Antonio Pulgar Lucas (Huánuco) and René Chávez Silvano (Loreto), along with other local officials and educators from both regions attended these events.
