Brazil’s Curitiba adds Ukrainian language to public school curriculum

Ukrainian has officially become part of the scholastic curriculum in the public schools of Curitiba in southern Brazil, said Vitório Sorotiuk, a UWC board member and former head of the Ukrainian-Brazilian Central Representation.

The initiative was approved by Curitiba’s Mayor Eduardo Pimentel, who also signed a memorandum of understanding between the city’s municipality and the Embassy of Ukraine there. The agreement was formalized in the presence of Mariano Czaikowski, the Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Curitiba, and Oleh Vlasenko, Chargé d’Affaires of Ukraine in Brazil.

Sorotiuk called the decision a significant step for the Ukrainian community in Brazil and for preserving national identity.

“Adding Ukrainian to the school curriculum recognises the contributions of Ukrainians to Curitiba’s development and reflects years of community work with local authorities. Learning the language will give the younger generation a deeper understanding of Ukrainian culture and history,” Sorotiuk said.

During the ceremony, Pimentel said that Curitiba maintains close ties with its Ukrainian community and values cultural diversity. 

“Our city is a land of many peoples,” he said, “and we consistently support the preservation of languages and traditions.”

Approximately 70,000 descendants of Ukrainian immigrants live in the state of Paraná, whose capital is Curitiba. To test the feasibility of the program, a pilot project was conducted over the past year at the Papa João XXIII Municipal School in the Portão district.

According to city officials, the results were promising, with around 400 students already showing interest in the course.

Jean Pierre Neto, the municipal secretary of education, said that the project began as a trial, but strong demand from students and parents demonstrates its potential. Rodolpho Zannin Feijó, the city’s international relations representative, added that the initiative meets the demand of the Ukrainian community.

As part of the program, the Ukrainian Embassy donated ten text books to the school, which will later be distributed to libraries across the municipal network.

Ukrainian has now become the fifth foreign language offered in Curitiba’s public schools’ extended learning program, alongside English, Spanish, Italian, and French.