Prime minister inaugurates hall of residence built for 184 students

Prime-Minister António Costa, present in the ceremony, stated that, currently, accommodation is one of the biggest barriers for access into Higher Education, also highlighting the fact that lack of income cannot stop anyone from getting into University. Hence, Universities, Municipalities and Government, all need to make an effort to fight that obstacle.

“This hall of residence is very important because the country must make a great effort to reach a 60% attendance rate of 20-year-old youngsters in Higher Education by 2030. So, if we want to grow further, we must have adequate public policy to grow further and, if there is anything essential to the democratization of Higher Education, it is to solve the accommodation issue.”

The Mayor of Lisbon, Fernando Medina, emphasized, “This is a moment of particular joy for the city of Lisbon” and defined a few commitments between the Municipality and the University since “Universidade de Lisboa is an engine for development in Lisbon”.

The Minister of Science and Technology, Manuel Heitor, was also present in the inauguration and he stressed that the number of students in Higher Education increased in the last three years and making accommodation available is, today, in Portugal, essential to overthrow inequalities.

The Rector of Universidade de Lisboa highlighted that this is the end of a long project and stated that administrative agility is needed, as “the university residence halls issue is an actual impediment for Access into Higher Education”. By building accommodation, “we will clearly help regulate market price”.

The first phase of the Universidade de Lisboa Residence Hall is finished and counts 184 beds. The second phase is meant to take-off in November and will create another 123 beds.