Financing for equity in pre-primary education
1. Education resources to subnational governments
2. Education resources to institutions
3. Education resources to students and families
4. Social policies and family support programmes
Introduction
Key financing indicators (UIS Data)
The official entrance age to pre-primary education in 2023 was 3 years old. In 2024, the number of years of free pre-primary education granted in legal frameworks and the number of years of compulsory pre-primary education granted in legal frameworks were 3. For 2023, the net enrolment rate for pre-primary for both sexeswas 98,60%.
Governance
In Peru, public funding for pre-primary education is provided by the national government through the Ministry of Education (MINEDU). The Ministry establishes policies, regulations, and prepares the national education budget. Most resources are allocated at the national level before being transferred to regional governments. The Early Childhood Education Department is responsible for classroom-based education (IIEE inicial) and non-classroom-based education (PRONOEI), both of which are monolingual in Spanish.
Tuition-free status
Pre-primary education is tuition-free, according to laws and policies.
1. Education resources to subnational governments
Regional and local governments are responsible for most of the country's public educational institutions, primarily at the basic education level (early childhood, primary, and secondary). These resources fund decentralised educational management, including teacher salaries, minor infrastructure, school maintenance, and additional educational services.
Central transfers are allocated to schools within regional territories based on benchmarks such as class size, enrollment rates, and infrastructure needs. Regions manage financial flows to ensure resources reach schools efficiently and meet national standards.
Local education management units, under regional governments, distribute resources directly to schools and oversee their implementation. Municipal governments also contribute through local funds.
These funds prioritize vulnerability criteria for fund allocation. The Regional Compensation Fund (FONCOR) transfers resources based on poverty levels and regional resource availability. The Municipal Compensation Fund (FONCOMUN) supports municipalities with redistributive criteria favouring remote and depressed areas, prioritising rural and marginal urban locations.
2. Education resources to institutions
Education subsidies aimed at equity are primarily provided through budget programmes (PP), which serve as the main tool for Results-Based Budgeting (PpR). These programmes organise and allocate public spending by emphasising not only the amount spent but also the tangible results achieved for the population's benefit.
For instance, the Budget Program 090 (PELA) is a nationwide initiative by the MINEDU, in coordination with the Office of Strategic Planning and Budgeting (OPEP) and the Office of Monitoring and Strategic Evaluation (OSEE), implemented regionally. The programme focuses on the efficient use of public budgets to improve learning in public schools, focusing on communication and mathematics for children aged three to five. The programme also seeks to upgrade infrastructure for kindergartens and schools and to enhance results-oriented educational management
Next to the PPs, PRONOEI is an alternative early childhood education programme specifically designed to serve vulnerable populations in rural and hard-to-reach areas where it is not feasible to establish formal educational institutions.
Finally, the National Fund for the Development of Peruvian Education (FONDEP) is a public institution under the Ministry of Education that promotes and finances investment, innovation, and educational development projects.
3. Education resources to students and families
No financial support mechanisms for pre-primary education has been identified.
4. Social policies and family support programmes
JUNTOS (PP 049) is a conditional cash transfer programme by the Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion, launched in September 2005 in one district to later expand to 68,8% of districts nationwide by 2016.
Eligibility requires households to live in districts with a poverty rate over 40% and be classified as poor by the Household Targeting System (SISFOH). Households must include at least one eligible member, such as a pregnant woman or child up to age 19. Upon enrollment, they receive an initial payment and must fulfil commitments related to health, nutrition, education, and civic engagement, monitored quarterly. Children aged six to 14 must maintain at least 85% school attendance
