Ministry appoints new manager for the Public University of Santo Domingo

The Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture appointed Christian Simón Rivadeneira Barcia as an academic member of the Management Commission of the Public University of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas. The decision is contained in Agreement No. MINEDEC-MINEDEC-2026-00077-A, signed on September 16, 2026, by Minister Gilda Natalia Alcívar García and published in Official Registry No. 377 on Friday, September 25, 2026. The appointment is effective as of September 17, 2026.

The appointment is based on numeral 1 of article 154 of the Constitution of the Republic and article 6 of the Law for the creation of the Public University of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, which assigns the Secretariat of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation —now a vice-ministry of the Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture— the responsibility of appointing the members of the Management Commission. The regulation notes that these members are subject to free appointment and removal, and that whoever chairs the Management Commission legally represents the university during the transition period.

The competence passed to the education portfolio following the merger by absorption of SENESCYT mandated by Executive Decree No. 100 of August 15, 2025, preceded by Executive Decree No. 60 of July 24, 2025. The head of the ministry was appointed via Executive Decree No. 224 of November 18, 2025.

A change in the management leadership

Article 1 of the agreement expresses gratitude for the services provided by Juan Alejandro Neira Mosquera and concludes his appointment as a member of the Management Commission as of September 16, 2026. Article 2 appoints Christian Simón Rivadeneira Barcia in his place, effective from September 17, 2026.

Neira Mosquera had been appointed to that position via Agreement No. SENESCYT-SENESCYT-2024-0063-AC of December 11, 2024. The new member will assume the duties of Internal Academic Management Commissioner, replacing the outgoing internal commissioner.

The reports supporting the decision

The processing of the appointment was supported by the following official documents:

• Need Report No. IG-DGUP-MINEDEC-34-09-2026, from the Undersecretariat of Higher Education Institutions, which concluded that the appointee meets the requirements of the Organic Law of Higher Education.
• Memorandum No. MINEDEC-VES-2026-0588-M, dated September 14, 2026, from the Vice Minister of Higher Education, which authorized the execution of the project agreement.
• Memorandum No. MINEDEC-CGAJ-2026-00661-M, dated September 15, 2026, with the favorable legal opinion from the General Coordination of Legal Advice.
• Agreement No. SENESCYT-SENESCYT-2024-0060-AC, dated December 10, 2024, containing the guidelines for the formation and operation of the Management Commission.
• Resolution No. RPC-SO-12-No.056-2012 of the Plenary of the Higher Education Council, which issued the Regulation for the Creation, Intervention, and Suspension of Universities and Polytechnic Schools.

Immediate session and validity

Article 3 stipulates that the Management Commission of the Public University of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas shall convene immediately for the election of its president. The sole repealing provision nullifies Ministerial Agreement No. MINEDEC-MINEDEC-2026-00076-A of September 16, 2026, and any regulation of equal or lower hierarchy that contradicts the new instrument.

The agreement entered into force upon its signing, without prejudice to its publication in the Official Registry. The Vice Ministry of Higher Education was tasked with its notification, the General Coordination of the Secretariat and Citizen Service with the publication process, and the Directorate of Social Communication with its dissemination on the institutional website.

The handover occurs while the university is undergoing its institutionalization process; therefore, the integration of its Management Commission defines the administrative and academic leadership of a public institution in a transition phase. The immediate election of its president and the continuity of the current guidelines are the steps that will mark the path of the educational institution in the coming months.

Source: Official Registry No. 377, Friday, September 25, 2026, Section I (Executive Branch), p. 6 (official reference: Agreement No. MINEDEC-MINEDEC-2026-00077-A).