Santo Tomás University Approved for $25 million USD Loan from IFC

Bogotá-based Santo Tomás University has been approved for a $25 million USD loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an arm of the World Bank.

The loan will be used for campus improvements to the university’s locations in Bogotá, Medellín, Bucaramanga, Villavicencio, and Tunja.

Some of the funds will also go toward technology and digital infrastructure upgrades as well as used to “tools required by private sector employers and facilitate their entry into the labor market,” according to the IFC. Santo Tomás sees ok ongoing investment into this area as key to its mission of expanding its virtual, remote program to help more people in rural areas pursue a degree.

The university will also continue to focus on expanding it virtual education and technological platforms that increase access to education in remote locations and in distance learning.

“We have set goals for the institution, which include to be an international reference point for top-quality multicampus education,” said Juan Ubaldo López Salamanca, rector of Universidad Santo Tomás.

The university is also undergoing a push to obtain an international accreditation, which IFC is contributing toward in terms of offering guidance and technical assistance. “This partnership with Santo Tomás University will boost access to quality education in Colombia, and we hope it will help the university to continue growing as one of the largest academic centers in the country,” said Juan Gonzalo Flores, IFC’s representative for the Andean region.