Cajamarca:
Partnering on education

In Peru’s remote Cajamarca region, amidst the majestic mountains that hold the promise of the world’s next major copper supply, Minera La Granja is making a critical investment: not in machinery, but in people. As the La Granja project, operated by First Quantum Minerals, progresses rapidly through its advanced exploration stage, the focus is sharpening on ensuring that the potential value of the operation is shared with its local community – a core principle of our approach globally. This commitment is best exemplified by a new partnership aimed at transforming the quality of local education.

Education collaboration
In an important step forward, the La Granja Social Fund Association (FSLG) – financed entirely by Minera La Granja – recently formalized a collaboration agreement with Empresarios por la Educación (ExE). ExE is a well-known, specialized organization in Peru that understands the precise mechanisms required to deploy effective educational initiatives. This multisectoral alliance is key to overcoming the challenges faced by rural education and demonstrates our conviction that real change requires more than just capital; it demands strategic, customized partnerships.
The agreement represents a major scaling of our efforts, building on the initial success of local programs. It formalizes two key initiatives, starting with the district of Querocoto, in the province of Chota:

1. Escuelas Indagadoras La Granja: An initiative already active in 15 schools, this program will now be expanded to enhance teaching skills in mathematics through the STEAM+H approach (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics, and Humanities). This methodology moves beyond traditional rote learning, promoting innovative methodologies and active teaching practices that foster critical thinking.
2. Querocoto United for Learning: A new, ambitious initiative launching across 67 educational institutions – from preschool to secondary level. This program will directly engage up to 200 teachers and local families, creating a unified front dedicated to measurable improvements in student learning outcomes.

Lasting impact
For First Quantum, a responsible mining operation is defined by the lasting positive legacy it creates. While local communities often rightly request improved school infrastructure, the project’s vision goes further. The objective is to give students, teachers, and families the opportunity to access improved capacities and learnings to enable whatever they wish to achieve in their lives. This focus on transferable skills ensures that the benefits of the project endure long after the mine’s eventual closure.
The selection of the STEAM+H curriculum is deeply strategic. It addresses a recognized gap in the region’s education while being intrinsically linked to the future needs of the La Granja project itself. By focusing on mathematics and the core disciplines of science and technology, we are helping to cultivate a talent pipeline. High school students participating today could become the skilled, local employees of the operation in years to come – a true example of a circular, long-term development model that benefits both the community and the operation.

Proof of concept
The La Granja project is not just a major undertaking for Peru; it stands as one of the world’s five largest undeveloped copper ore bodies. This scale necessitates a similarly large social footprint. While Querocoto is the starting point, this comprehensive educational strategy is designed to be a proof of concept for future expansion. With our project projected to move quickly from advanced exploration into development, its sphere of influence – stretching across more than 100 kilometres – will grow rapidly. This first phase in Querocoto will serve as the essential model, demonstrating how this type of investment can really help local communities, and so build a foundation for wider buy-in to similar programs in other communities.
This is the cornerstone of our long-term partnership with Peru: a conviction that by investing in high-quality, relevant education today, we ensure that the region is equipped not just to participate in, but to lead, its own development tomorrow. This educational programme represents one of six social programs currently underway, all designed to ensure that our operation in La Granja translates into lasting prosperity and capacity for the people of Cajamarca.