Higher education in Latin America. Contributions for the construction of a new agenda

The current development and future prospects of education, particularly those of Higher Education, will strongly affect the performance of society for the next twenty or thirty years. Therefore, the definition of policy guidelines of education is a subject that concerns us all, since it might encourage or not the development of democracy and social justice. In this respect, the need for a debate over a new agenda has become essential to reach an agreement among politicians, social actors, community actors and education actors. A first step will entail understanding and assuming the current problems, analyzing the progress and limitations in relation to educational policies (either run or planned), and discussing their possible prospects. To achieve this, it is important to become familiar with the trends and the current status of discussions at national, regional and global levels, both from an academic and institutional perspective, as part of the new responsibilities that universities are taking or should be taking. This article is intended to address a brief overview of the evolution, situation, problems and challenges of Higher Education in the region; of the processes of internationalization, transnationalization and mercantilization-its prospects and dangers - and the necessary focus of Higher Education now facing the serious problems of fragmentation and heterogeneity of Latin American education systems. As a conclusion, it will present some guidelines and strategies for the development of higher education policies aimed at building a Latin American Space for Higher Education.