Paim wants simplified validation of foreign diplomas.

The Senate Agency Senator Paulo Paim (PT-RS) defended on Monday, the 18th, the streamlining of the validation of diplomas issued abroad. The senator suggested the creation of a mutual recognition mechanism to simplify the analysis of degrees and bring educational systems closer together within Mercosur.

Paim said that he has been receiving an increasing number of letters from students complaining about the difficulties in validating their diplomas issued outside of Brazil. The senator stated that the recognition process, according to the students' own accounts, is extremely time-consuming.

"The recognition process is extremely lengthy, bureaucratic, and, as they say, requires a long journey," he informed.

According to Paim, the fact that each public university has the autonomy to establish its own criteria for recognizing these diplomas is the reason for the delay in the process and also for the exorbitant fees charged.

"The procedures weigh heavily on the pockets of those who studied abroad and are unemployed here in Brazil. There is no predefined value. Each institution charges what it wants. Therefore, the costs can be double from one university to another," explained the senator.

The senator suggested that, within the framework of Mercosur, the recognition of diplomas issued in the bloc's member countries should be facilitated.

"I believe it is possible to create a mechanism for mutual recognition, simplifying the ability to analyze qualifications and bringing educational systems closer together, both for Brazilians and for those who are not Brazilian and who have the same problem within Mercosur," he suggested.

The senator cited the Revalidation Commission, as it is called, which has been dedicated to the topic within the National Education Council. However, he stressed that it is necessary to intensify agreements, especially for cases of specialization within Mercosur, since the process of recognizing degrees is still slow.

Paulo Paim also stated that there are several projects in the National Congress that address the issue and advocated for progress in the voting on these proposals.

Adoption

Senator Paulo Paim also requested changes to the current National Adoption Law (Law 12.010/2009). According to the senator, the rigidity of the law has harmed the lives of hundreds of children waiting for a family.

Among the rules of the law that he considers rigid is the one that dictates that siblings can only be adopted by the same family.

"Sometimes a one-year-old child misses the opportunity to be adopted because they have a sibling group that could number ten, eight, five, four, or three. And how can someone legally adopt eight children? Of course not," she explained.

According to Paim, experts have pointed out that there are ways to improve this issue, such as establishing that siblings live in the same city, for example.

"We could change the law to ensure that these children have the right to adoption without a single family having to adopt them all," he added.

Paim emphasized the importance of prioritizing the well-being of children, not just adoptive parents. The senator cited the recent case of illegal adoption of children in Bahia to argue that society is individualistic and still does not respect the fact that the child should come first.

– Adoption is a beautiful act, a praiseworthy act, an act of love, but there can be no irregularities, nor violations of human rights, either on the part of the adoptees or the adoptive parents. That is why changing the law is fundamental – concluded the senator.