The financing of higher education and the constraints to student and teacher mobility in the internationalization strategies of Latin American universities

The Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI) presented its proposed macro-strategy for universities in 2020 (Universidad Ibero-America 2030). As part of its actions, in 2021 it published a guide for implementing virtual mobility, as a response to the pandemic-related constraints that added to the financial limitations of the institutions. In addition to the differences in education structures and policies in Latin American countries, the lack of long-term government funding strategies for higher education also reduces the capacity for institutional investment in research and development, student and teacher mobility, among other aspects in the context of internationalisation strategies According to data from the World Bank (2017), government funding in higher education in Latin America and the Caribbean is less than 4.5% of GDP. Even so, when compared to the USA (5.0), the EU (4.7) and East Asia & Pacific (5.0), the difference does not exceed 0.5%. As part of a project under development within the framework of the relationship between higher education funding and university internationalisation, this study aims to map higher education funding in Latin America in comparison with other countries and analyse its impact on institutional policies of university internationalisation. From the methodological point of view the study adopts a qualitative and descriptive approach, with bibliographic and documentary research, document analysis and content analysis. From the results, it is expected to present an initial cartography of the relationship between higher education funding and university internationalization in Latin America and its impacts on research, student, and teacher mobility. The first phase of the project will be completed in February 2022, and its preliminary results may already be presented at the congress.