Viviane Morales Hoyos

Minister of National Education

A lawyer of the Colegio Mayor de Nuestra Señora del Rosario, with a master's degree in Public Law from the University of Paris, she has extensive experience in public service, academia, and the country’s institutional life.

She served as Attorney General of the Nation (2011-2012), becoming the first woman to hold this position. She also served as Colombia's ambassador to the Republic of France and UNESCO (2018-2021) and to the OECD (2018-2020). She served as a Senator of the Republic (1998-2002 and 2014-2018) and as a Representative in the House of Representatives (1991-1994 and 1994-1998). She also served as an associate justice of the Constitutional Court (2003-2005).

In the Ministry of Economic Development (1986-1990), she served as acting Vice-minister, General Secretary, and advisor to the Minister’s Office, and in 1990 she was an advisor to the National Constituent Assembly, appointed by the constituent Jaime Ortiz Hurtado to assist in drafting his proposal for the chapter on Fundamental Rights of the Political Constitution of 1991.

Her career has also been closely linked to academia. She was a tenured professor of Constitutional Law at the Colegio Mayor de Nuestra Señora del Rosario from 2002 to 2014, a professor of the Master's Degree in Law at the National University of Colombia, and a professor in the Specialization in Government and Public Management at the Jorge Tadeo Lozano University.

As a congresswoman, she promoted initiatives related to education, fundamental rights, equality, and the fight against corruption. She served as a rapporteur of the Police Code and the Asset Forfeiture Act. She was the author of Law 1874 of 2017, which amended the General Education Law, to reinstate the obligatory teaching of history in elementary and secondary education; Law 581 of 2000, Quotas Law; Law 133 of 1994, on religious freedom and equality of worship; and Law 472 of 1998, Law of Popular Actions.

As Minister of National Education, Viviane Morales Hoyos proposes a vision focused on high quality, respect, critical thinking, and educating citizens for democratic life. Her approach is rooted in a conviction: "The moral reconstruction of a country must be based on education in civic values".

Her roadmap addresses four major challenges: Quality and critical thinking: strengthening foundational skills such as reading, writing, exercising sound judgment, and respecting others, while incorporating new technologies, artificial intelligence, and critical thinking within an education grounded in humanistic values.

Educational pathways and retention: reducing youth dropout rates, expanding access to education, and ensuring that education contributes to the development of life plans.

Education and development: reducing the gaps between public and private education, expanding opportunities, and strengthening an education system that is relevant to the country’s needs and technological changes.

Enhancing the status of teachers and strengthening institutions: maintaining an ongoing dialogue with teachers, promoting their professional development, and improving teaching tools, along with improvements to educational infrastructure, especially in rural areas.

The purpose is to contribute to a moral reconstruction of the homeland through education, shaping citizens capable of respecting others, exercising their freedom responsibly, participating in democracy, and building a country with greater opportunities.