Managua the national education center, with most of the nation's prestigious universities and higher education institutions based there. In 2007, after a successful literacy campaign, Managua was declared by the Mayor of Managua and the Sandinista party newspaper to be the first capital city in Central America to be rid of illiteracy. Nicaragua's higher education system consists of 48 universities and 113 colleges, vocational and technical institutes which serve students in the areas of electronics, computer systems and sciences, agroforestry, construction and trade-related services. The educational system includes 1 United States accredited English language university, 3 bilingual university programs, 5 bilingual
Managua central departments. This highway is commonly referred to as the "Northern Highway." The "Southern Highway", the southern part of the Pan-American highway, connects Managua to southern departments Carazo, Rivas and others. The "Carretera A Masaya" connects Managua to the departments of Masaya and Granada. The newly reconstructed "Carretera A León" connects Managua with León. All of these highways are in good condition, with little traffic congestion. Infrastructure on the highways is well maintained. This also tends to be true for cities and towns that are served or are in close distance with the freeways. However, this does not yield truthfully