Discrimination is not born from genetics. It is built.
Nearly half of Colombian students cannot access internet, creating severe educational disparities concentrated in rural and peripheral regions. Higher education coverage nationally sits at 56%, below regional averages, with three eastern departments lacking universities entirely.
- 44% of Colombian university students lack internet access
- Chocó department has connectivity below 1%
- National higher education coverage is 56%, below regional average
- Three eastern departments have no universities
- 8,000+ experts from five Latin American countries attended the seminar
44% of Colombian students lack internet access, with some regions like Chocó at near 1% connectivity. Regional experts warn digital inequality undermines employability and AI integration in universities.
Nearly half of Colombia's university students have no internet connection. In the department of Chocó, the figure is even starker—connectivity barely reaches 1%. These numbers, presented at an international seminar on higher education held this week, expose a fracture in the country's educational system that extends far beyond the simple absence of broadband.
More than 8,000 experts from across Latin America gathered at the Universidad de Los Llanos for a three-day conference titled "The Futures of Higher Education: Employability, Inclusion, and Artificial Intelligence." The event brought together university presidents and academics from Colombia, Argentina, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru to confront a shared crisis: how to build inclusive, relevant education systems when vast populations remain disconnected from the digital infrastructure that increasingly defines what it means to be educated.
The statistics paint a picture of profound regional inequality. Colombia's national higher education coverage stands at 56 percent—already below the regional average—but this figure masks dramatic disparities. Three departments in the eastern part of the country have no universities at all. Jairo Torres, president of both ASCUN and SUE, the main higher education associations, framed the problem plainly: advances in Colombian education exist, but they cluster in a handful of cities. The rest of the country experiences something closer to abandonment. "We have made significant efforts to expand coverage," Torres said, "but the numbers tell a different story when you look at what's actually happening in the regions."
The conversation at the seminar moved beyond connectivity to ask harder questions about what education is actually for. Rafael Puyol, president of the International University of La Rioja, defined employability not as a fixed credential but as a dynamic capacity—the ability to find work, keep it, and advance through continuous learning. But universities, he argued, are failing on two fronts: they are not producing graduates in fields the economy actually needs, and they are not equipping graduates with the skills required for the jobs that exist. The problem is especially acute in STEM fields, where there is a clear shortage of professionals. Among women, the deficit is even more pronounced. Technology sectors remain heavily male-dominated, a pattern that begins in university and extends into the workplace.
Lorenzo Portocarrero, executive director of ACIET, a technology industry association, warned that the moment demands a fundamental rethinking of how universities operate. Artificial intelligence presents both opportunity and ethical complexity. The challenge is not simply to teach students about AI but to redesign entire programs around the reality that technology will reshape every profession. Charles Arosa, rector of the Universidad de Los Llanos, emphasized that inclusion must be the foundation of any educational system. "Discrimination is not born from genetics," he said. "It is built. We must build systems that reflect the full humanity of every person and offer genuine opportunity in employability, inclusion, and new technologies."
Antonio José Castro, director of social outreach at the Universidad de Los Llanos, identified a deeper problem: universities have become comfortable, even complacent, in how they train professionals. Programs churn out graduates in similar molds, following established patterns. Fear of innovation, of mathematics, of rigorous science keeps institutions locked in place. Breaking that inertia requires not just new courses but a cultural shift—permission to experiment, to fail, to build something different.
The seminar closed with working groups on inclusion and artificial intelligence, positioning itself as a reference point for higher education policy across Latin America. But the conversation revealed something sobering: the region's universities face a convergence of crises. Digital infrastructure is unequally distributed. Curricula are misaligned with labor markets. Gender gaps persist in technical fields. And artificial intelligence is arriving whether institutions are ready or not. For Colombia especially, where 44 percent of students cannot even access the internet, the gap between the education system that exists and the one the future requires has become impossible to ignore.
Citas Notables
We have made significant efforts to expand coverage, but the numbers tell a different story when you look at what's actually happening in the regions.— Jairo Torres, president of ASCUN and SUE
Universities are not producing graduates in fields the economy actually needs, and they are not equipping graduates with the skills required for the jobs that exist.— Rafael Puyol, president of the International University of La Rioja
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does internet access matter so much for higher education? Couldn't a student in Chocó still attend university somehow?
They could, in theory. But in practice, higher education has become digital. Lectures are online, assignments are submitted digitally, research happens through databases. A student without internet is not just inconvenienced—they're locked out of the actual experience of being a university student.
And the 44 percent figure—is that students who have no internet at home, or students who have no internet access anywhere?
The reporting doesn't specify that distinction, but given that Chocó is at 1 percent, we're talking about regions where internet is genuinely scarce. It's not just a home connectivity problem. It's infrastructure that doesn't exist.
The seminar talked a lot about STEM and employability. Is the problem that universities aren't teaching STEM, or that students can't access STEM education because they lack internet?
Both, actually. There's a shortage of STEM professionals across the region—universities aren't producing enough. But for students without internet, the barrier comes earlier. They can't even enroll in programs that require digital access. The digital divide becomes a skills divide becomes an employment divide.
One speaker mentioned that universities are training people in the same way they always have. Is that a separate problem from the digital divide?
It is, but they're connected. Universities that are comfortable with old methods are also slower to adapt to the reality that their graduates need different skills. The digital divide is immediate and physical. The curriculum problem is institutional and cultural. Both need to change.
What happens to the students in those three eastern departments with no universities at all?
They either don't pursue higher education, or they have to leave home to do it. That's a cost—financial, social, personal. It concentrates opportunity in cities and leaves entire regions behind.
Is artificial intelligence making this worse or better?
That's the question the seminar was wrestling with. AI could democratize education—better tools, personalized learning. But if you don't have internet, AI doesn't help you. And if universities don't redesign their programs around AI, graduates will be unprepared. So it's both an opportunity and a threat, depending on whether the system can actually change.