Opposition challenges English training contract linked to Sturzenegger’s wife

The direct award of a contract worth over 114 million pesos (around US$82,000) by Argentina’s Foreign Ministry to the wife of an official of a top minister has sparked fresh controversy for President Javier Milei’s government.

The nine-month agreement with the Asociación Argentina de Cultura Inglesa (AACI) language school for nine months of English-language training for diplomats and ministry staff has even prompted a criminal complaint alleging possible transparency breaches in the handling of the contract.

The AACI has been headed since 2020 by María Josefina Rouillet, the wife of the current Deregulation & State Transformation Minister, Federico Sturzenegger, a key official in the Milei government.

Although the service – formally contracted in January 19, 2026 – includes textbooks as well as classroom instruction, the contractual costs triggered criticism from some opposition sectors.

The contract involves English-language training for 132 diplomats and Foreign Ministry employees and includes a total of 594 classroom hours between March and November at an hourly cost of 191,993 pesos.

The AACI has been contracted by the Foreign Ministry for similar work since 2018.

According to the government’s account and what can be gathered from the technical file accompanying the award, the sums paid by the state are justified on the grounds that this is not a simple contract but a comprehensive service covering both operational costs and reading materials: up to 80 initial proficiency exams, the use of digital support platforms, follow-up metrics, the granting of international certificates and, fundamentally, the supply of original textbooks (published by both Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press) for the 132 participants in the programme.

Despite these justifications and the signing of a “Pact of Integrity” under Decree 202/2017, the hourly sum revived criticism of the mechanisms behind state contracts, especially when they involve individuals directly related to ministers, and even more so when awarded directly.

According to the documents, the proposal to the Foreign Ministry headed by Pablo Quirno – who was touring Europe when the news of the contract first broke – was submitted by Rouillet herself to the ministerial department responsible for human resources development.

The award was formalised via Disposición DI-2026-06694033-APN-SSCYAE#MRE in the framework of file EX-2025-132767865-APN-DCYC#MRE and procedure 26-0033-CDI25, published in the COMPR.AR system. The contract will run for nine months with the option of extending it for an equal period.

Various Foreign Ministry departments were involved in processing the file, including the Directorate of Human Resources Development, the Directorate of Procurement and Contracting, the Directorate-General of Administration and the Directorate-General of Legal Affairs, as well as the Directorate of the Foreign Service Institute (ISEN). 

Complaint

On Monday, a criminal complaint was filed before the Federal Criminal and Correctional Chamber against Sturzenegger and other national officials, alleging the failure to publish documentation on the Anti-Corruption Office (OA) website as required under Decree 202/2017. 

Details of the award were first published by the Noticias Argentinas news agency.

The complaint, submitted by lawyers José Lucas Magioncalda and Juan Martín Fazio – who requested recognition as members of the anti-corruption political group Reset Republicano – questions whether the sworn declaration of interests acknowledging the “positive link” between Rouillet and Sturzenegger was properly published on the OA portal.

The presentation argues that no record of the filing appeared in the OA’s public search engine as of February 15, 2026, potentially breaching what it describes as a key transparency requirement. It also cites possible offences including breach of the duties of a public official and negotiations incompatible with the exercise of public office.

The complainants further point to a previous contract between the same parties in 2024 and requested that the court determine whether the declaration of interests should have been updated within the timeframe established by the decree and whether such an update was duly published.

In an interview with the La Nación+ news channel, Magioncalda reiterated that the “central” dissemination of the award had not been made on the OA website. He argued this rendered the contract “null and void.”

Peronist Senator Juliana Di Tullio described the contract as a “rip off” and vowed to file “the appropriate complaint” in response to the claims.

‘No irregularity’

On his X social media account, responding to a post by a user questioning the case, Quirno wrote: "There is absolutely no irregularity but quite the contrary!”

“The Foreign Ministry has contracted AACI since 2018 for the English language training of our staff,” he continued. “On this occasion, since its executive director is Federico Sturzenegger’s wife, the integrity procedures – including the intervention of the Anti-Corruption Office and SIGEN comptrollers to review everything – were activated.”

Quirno’s remarks came before news emerged of the criminal complaint questioning whether all transparency requirements under Decree 202/2017 had been fully complied with.

Sources linked to the organisation told the Perfil newspaper: "The sums paid by the Foreign Ministry are less than those paid by a normal AACI student, quite apart from the price being fixed as from March, as opposed to normal students whose fees are updated to inflation."

"This is not comparable with having a teacher at a company or state agency. These students attend AACI and take classes, even when the teacher is ill, are certified for proficiency, etc.," they argued.

The format includes five regular courses (Senior 3, Senior 4, Senior 5, Senior 6 and First Certificate) with a total of 110 participants; workshops for diplomatic personnel at the ISEN institute for the training of diplomats at B2 and C1 levels with 22 participants; and up to 80 proficiency tests for course placement.

Students must attend classes at the AACI headquarters at Suipacha 1333 between March and November. Each course comprises 10 hours per month between 1pm and 5pm. Specialised workshops last eight hours.

– TIMES/PERFIL/NA