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Through a nationwide caravan spanning more than 2,500 kilometres, Portugal's education union Federação Nacional de Professores (FENPROF) brought Education International's Go Public! Fund Education campaign directly to schools and communities, mobilising thousands of teachers and citizens around a common message: “If we want quality education for all, we must invest in public education and value the teachers who make it possible.”

Across Portugal, thousands of teachers, parents, and community members joined a national mobilisation to defend public education and demand urgent action to address the growing teacher shortage. Under the banner of Education International’s Go Public! Fund Education campaign, the National Federation of Teachers FENPROF organised a nationwide caravan that brought the debate directly into schools, towns and cities, reinforcing the call for greater investment in public education and the teaching profession.

Travelling more than 2,500 kilometres through all 18 districts of mainland Portugal and the autonomous regions of the Azores and Madeira, the caravan underlined: “We are teachers, we shape the future! Value us — now!”

Making the teacher shortage impossible to ignore

One of the caravan’s central aims was to expose the scale of the teacher shortage affecting schools across Portugal. FENPROF highlighted the ageing teaching workforce and the increasingly difficult conditions facing educators, warning that without decisive action, the crisis would deepen.

At every stop, union leaders and members of FENPROF’s affiliated organisations engaged teachers and local communities in discussions about the future of public education. Through plenaries, debates and public information sessions, participants examined the causes of the shortage and the measures needed to reverse it.

The caravan further emphasised that recruiting and retaining teachers requires more than temporary solutions. It demands meaningful recognition of the profession, attractive career prospects and sustained public investment in schools.

FENPROF also drew attention to recommendations from the United Nations, which have repeatedly stressed the need for governments to tackle teacher shortages by improving working conditions, strengthening professional status, and increasing investment in education systems.

Building support for public education

The national teachers’ caravan included 32 plenary meetings across the country and brought together more than 5,000 teachers.

Participants adopted motions entitled “For the Urgent Recognition and Valuing of the Teaching Career, For Public Education, For the Right to Education”, reaffirming the demand for immediate measures to strengthen the profession and safeguard the right to quality education.

Beyond the meetings themselves, the campaign reached a broader audience through extensive coverage by local radio stations and regional newspapers, helping bring education issues into public debate and encouraging wider civic engagement.

Thousands of voices delivered to government

The caravan concluded with a symbolic national action that embodied the campaign’s grassroots approach. Thousands of postcards signed by ordinary citizens were delivered to the Prime Minister, calling for greater investment in public education and meaningful recognition of teachers’ work.

Their message was unequivocal:

“Investing in education is the way to guarantee teachers in every classroom, every day. This is what the Government must ensure, in accordance with the Constitution and the best interests of children and young people.”

Go Public! Fund Education

Launched by Education International, Go Public! Fund Education is a global campaign calling on governments to invest in quality public education for every student and to strengthen the teaching profession. At a time when many countries face severe teacher shortages, underfunding, and growing inequalities, the campaign advocates for sustainable public financing of education, good working conditions for teachers, and policies that ensure every child has access to qualified and well-supported educators.

In Portugal, FENPROF transformed this global message into concrete trade union action, taking the campaign directly to communities and creating spaces for dialogue on the future of education. By connecting the global objectives of Go Public! Fund Education with the lived realities of teachers and students in Portugal, the union succeeded in broadening public understanding of the challenges facing education and building support for lasting solutions.