“Decent School Program” (Programa Escola Digna): A compromise with the quality Maranhão's public basic education. Linked to the 4th SDG by promoting and ensuring an inclusive and equitable quality education.

Formulated as an educational macropolicy aiming the institutionalization of structuring elements that subsidize Maranhão&#39;s Office of Education actions,<br />
the &quot;Escola Digna&quot; Programme has two main pillars: the collaboration regime, which revolves around the relation between state level and local level government, and the management of the state&#39;s network of public basic education. The reason of being of the programme is the belief that ensuring access to a worthy learning and living space that is a school is a pivotal initiative on the full development of citizenship and the battle against social exclusion, thus configuring a strategy that overcomes the inequality of opportunities in the school community, society and the world. <br />
Providing students, teachers and the community a deserving school structure is the first step in that direction, hence the importance of substituting waddle and daub schools for masonry ones. Both pillars are taken into account in this initiative. The collaboration regime is crucial, since it maps and acts as a partner when restoring and revitalizing schools in inappropriate conditions. Also, it expands the access to public education by constructing schools in areas previously ignored. An important aspect of these new structures is their essence in having the students as protagonists and the further expansion of full-time schools.<br />
Offering technical-pedagogical support to local schools networks within the state is also essential to strengthen relations, communication and technical and managerial capacities, fomenting the establishment of an institutionalized network of qualification to all involved actors such as school managers, pedagogical coordinators, teachers and technical teams. This support targets improving the quality of the teaching-learning process and betterment of overall low results in education, and is one of the main courses of action from the collaboration regime.<br />
Another cornerstone of the &quot;Escola Digna&quot; programme is professional appreciation, conducted by offering certified courses, continuing education, fair wages and encouraging self-education.<br />
An important action and challenge that we are still overcoming is qualifying local governments to update and elaborate documents that serve as guidance to the educational policy. Our efforts go to improving the work environment, pedagogical practice and interpersonal relations and is done through the collaboration regime .<br />
Monitoring and evaluation of policies and actions are also one the key elements and objectives of the programme, seeking efficiency, accountability and transparency, but it is still a challenge being dealt with.<br />
The objectives above are all effective responses to some of the SDGs/2030 Agenda, especially number 4, since the &quot;Escola Digna&quot; programme aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. We believe that this project is also indirectly an effective response to other SDGs such as SDG1, SDG3, SDG5, SDG10 and SDG11 since education is one of the biggest factors in reducing inequalities, fighting against prejudice and promoting health. Also, the new structures provide a safer place for students to live and learn.