The government and the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP) signed this Friday an agreement for 100% state funding for the rehabilitation of more than 450 schools transferred to the councils as part of the decentralization of powers.
The signing of this Sector Commitment Agreement for the Funding of the School Rehabilitation/Rehabilitation Program occurs one year after the conclusion of an agreement between the government and the ANMP to encourage decentralization in the areas of education and health.
Under an agreement signed a year ago, this Friday the government will sign a pledge to fund the rehabilitation by 2033 of 451 schools in need of repair, divided into three tiers: priority, urgent and very urgent.
The agreement between the government and the municipalities, which the Luz agency had access to, provides for 32 interventions that are considered very urgent, 104 urgent and 315 priority.
In addition to them, there are about a dozen more schools that are not included in this number, but which will also be rehabilitated.
At Friday’s ceremony at the Foz Palace in Lisbon, the government is expected to be represented by Prime Minister António Costa, Finance Minister Fernando Medina, Education Minister João Costa and Territorial Unity Minister Ana Abrunosa, while the ANMP will be represented by its President Luisa Salgueiro.
For these interventions, an investment of about 2,000 million euros is envisaged, of which 450 million euros through the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), 100 million from Portugal until 2030 and some funds are still available from Portugal until 2020.
The rest will come “through loans that the government will find in the European Investment Bank,” said Luisa Salgueiro.
Along with social activities, education and healthcare have been the decentralized areas most distrusted by mayors, as they involve large transfers of funds and staff.
The agreement, signed a year ago between the government and the ANMP, follows a series of protests by the municipalities against the lack of funds, most notably the Chamber of Porto, which refused to unite the municipalities.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.