On January 28, 2026, partners of the Erasmus+ MOCHILA Project took part in the panel “Micro-credentials in Ibero-America: Building Equity and Quality through #ProyectoMOCHILA”, held during the IFE Conference 2026, organized by the Institute for the Future of Education (IFE) at Tecnológico de Monterrey.
During this session, representatives from various MOCHILA partner universities reflected on the challenges, lessons learned, and necessary conditions for the sustainable implementation of micro-credentials in Latin America and the Caribbean. From the dialogue, five key insights emerged, shaping the roadmap toward a more strategic and context-sensitive adoption:
🔹 Transfer is not automatic
European models offer valuable frameworks and international credibility, but their implementation in Ibero-America requires deep contextual adaptation, avoiding mechanical replication.
🔹 Legitimacy is built through evidence
Without clear indicators of academic, social, and labor impact —and without methodological rigor— micro-credentials risk becoming well-intentioned but empty promises.
🔹 Scaling without governance weakens quality
The tension between scale and quality cannot be solved with technology alone, but with clear rules, defined institutional roles, and sustained decision-making.
🔹 Strategy matters more than budget
Even with limited resources, progress is possible if institutions prioritize lean structures, strategic partnerships, performance-based evaluation, and gradual but intentional implementation.
🔹 True change is institutional
Micro-credentials only transform higher education when they challenge traditional structures such as curriculum, assessment, recognition, and academic leadership.
This participation reaffirms the MOCHILA Project’s commitment to collaboratively building a regional framework for micro-credentials that upholds the principles of equity, quality, and relevance, and that fosters deep and sustainable institutional transformation.
