Source: European Parliament
The Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) envisages the investment of EUR 516million[1] in loans for the construction or renovation of existing residences for higher education students, notably in areas where housing pressure is most acute.
It plans to make available 18 000 new and renovated higher education students’ accommodation places at affordable prices (11 699 new beds and 6 444 renovated existing beds) by 2026 in the frame of the national plan for housing in higher education 2022-2026 (PNAES)[2]. The PNAES website provides detailed information of the financed projects.
Currently, there are around 15 000 students’ beds in public residences. According to the 2022-2026 PNAES, it is expected that the 11 699 new beds will represent a 78% increase in capacity by 2026. The public network of students’ accommodations will then integrate the total of 26 772 beds available at affordable prices.
As mentioned above, investments for student housing under the Portuguese RRP are provided through loan support to the Member State, and therefore no grants are earmarked for this purpose.