Q COSTA RICA — Hundreds of students, professors, university employees, union representatives and politicians took to the streets of San José on Tuesday to protest proposed reductions in funding for Costa Rica’s public universities.
The demonstration, known as the “Gran Marcha Nacional en Defensa de la Educación” (Great National March in Defense of Education), began shortly after 9:30 a.m. at the Fuente de la Hispanidad in San Pedro de Montes de Oca and proceeded toward the Legislative Assembly.
Protesters urged lawmakers to reconsider cuts in the proposed 2027 national budget, warning they could affect scholarships, admissions, research programs, and regional campuses.
The march was organized by the National Council of University Rectors, known as Conare, which represents the Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR)—University of Costa Rica, the Tecnológico de Costa Rica (TEC)—Costa Rica Institute of Technology, the Universidad Nacional (UNA)—National University, the Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED)—State Distance University and the Universidad Técnica Nacional (UTN)—National Technical University.
Social organizations, trade unions, political figures and representatives of productive sectors also joined the mobilization.
The immediate trigger was a decision by the Legislative Assembly’s Finance Affairs Commission to cut ¢8.048 billion—approximately US$17 million—from the Special Fund for the Financing of Public Higher Education, or FEES, for 2027. The motion, promoted by the governing Paritdo Pueblo Soberano (PPSO), passed by six votes to five after the ruling party requested that lawmakers reconsider an earlier rejection.
The government intends to transfer the money to the Ministry of Public Education to help cover obligations linked to the pension system for teachers and education workers. The measure must still be approved by the full Legislative Assembly before it becomes part of the 2027 spending plan.
A dispute over access, not only accounting
University leaders argue that the controversy goes beyond the size of the reduction. They also object to the government’s decision not to increase the FEES compared with the previous year, saying stagnant funding could weaken the institutions’ ability to meet rising demand for higher education.
Rectors have warned that the consequences could be felt most sharply outside the Greater Metropolitan Area. Regional campuses serve students who may have no practical alternative to public universities, particularly in communities where relocation to San José would be financially impossible.
Jorge Herrera Murillo, rector of the UNA and president of Conare, said the march aimed to defend educational opportunities for people across the country. The concern is straightforward: when funding is reduced, access may contract first in the places with fewer alternatives.
The universities have also pointed to proposed cuts affecting particular programs, including ¢462 million allocated to scientific Olympiads. The Tecnológico de Costa Rica has warned about possible consequences for its Limón campus, while Education Minister Leonardo Sánchez has disputed those claims and accused the institution’s rector of political pressure. She rejected the accusation.
The political stakes
The protest reflects a broader conflict between the government’s budget priorities and the public universities’ constitutional and social role. Officials appear to be treating the FEES as one potential source of savings within a budget constrained by pension obligations and competing demands.
University leaders, by contrast, describe the fund as a pillar of national development and a safeguard for educational access.
That difference in framing matters. To the government, the cut may represent a reallocation of public money. To students and university authorities, it risks shifting the cost of fiscal pressure onto scholarships, regional campuses and research—areas whose effects may not be visible immediately but can shape opportunities for years.
The presence of former President Luis Guillermo Solís (2014-2018) added political weight to the demonstration. Solís criticized the budget policies of the administrations of Rodrigo Chaves and Laura Fernández, linking the dispute to a larger debate about the direction of public services in Costa Rica.
The University of Costa Rica authorized students, faculty, and administrative staff to attend the march and suspended evaluations between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., with exams and other assessments to be rescheduled. Protests also took place in other parts of the country.
For now, the proposed reduction is not final. It remains subject to debate and approval in the full Legislative Assembly.
That leaves room for negotiations, but it also ensures that the confrontation will continue. The coming debate will test whether lawmakers view public higher education as a budget line to be trimmed—or as infrastructure essential to the country’s social and economic future.
The rectors of the UCR, Carlos Araya Leandro, and of the UNA, Jorge Herrera Murillo, reiterated their willingness to engage in dialogue as the first way to find a solution to the budget cuts affecting public higher education.
They pointed out that defending public higher education goes beyond discussions about university budgets. It’s about guaranteeing access to quality education, strengthening research, community outreach, and knowledge creation, and preserving these institutions’ contribution to the country’s development.
