By Lucia Arbelbide
The U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay Heide Fulton and Uruguay’s First Lady Lorena Ponce de Leon launched the Sembrando Inglés Comercial program in March 2023.
Embassy Montevideo celebrated the program’s third consecutive year by sponsoring 300 English language scholarships for entrepreneurs across Uruguay. The goal is to improve participants’ English language ability, ultimately strengthening the Uruguayan economy and improving trade between both countries.
With the president of Uruguay in attendance at the event, the ambassador’s remarks highlighted the importance of promoting entrepreneurship and trade while strengthening ties between the Lacalle Pou administration and the United States.
“It is a priority to support education in Uruguay, since it is the foundation for economic prosperity,” said Fulton. “Entrepreneurs are one of the main engines of prosperity, job creators, innovation, and competitiveness. Supporting them is crucial for the economic and social development of a country.”
Since 2021, the embassy has funded English scholarships for more than 1,100 entrepreneurs through Sembrando. English training was implemented by the Binational Center, an American Space located at the Alianza Cultural Uruguay-Estados Unidos, which played a crucial role in selecting entrepreneurs and delivering English classes.
Through collaboration with the government and people of Uruguay, Embassy Montevideo seeks to empower Uruguayan entrepreneurs with this program. The embassy has a long history of supporting training in English and is committed to supporting education and entrepreneurship opportunities for Uruguayans to empower people with tools to build their lives and contribute to the development of their country.
Lucia Arbelbide is a locally employed staff member of the public diplomacy section at Embassy Montevideo.
