Africa-Press – Mozambique. The parents of 300 to 500 Mozambican students applying for higher education places in Portugal, whose applications did not reach their destination within the deadline, on Monday petitioned for the overlooking of what they consider to be a procedural lapse.
“Bearing in mind the fact that the applications of Mozambican students were submitted in due time,” the petitioners ask the authorities of both countries for the applications to be accepted “on an exceptional basis”, the petition reads.
According to the petition document, after contacting the Mozambican Scholarship Institute last week, the parents concluded that there was “a lapse in the submission” of applications by the institution.
The first surprise came in August. Although parents had proof of having delivered necessary documentation online, the Instituto de Bolsas de Estudos, after the start of the process, then asked for paper documents and provided new application forms, causing “perplexity”.
It was nevertheless understood that a way would be found to “speed up the process” and meet deadlines, the petition reads.
Only in the last week, after some students received contradictory information about the status of their applications at both the Mozambican embassy in Lisbon and the Instituto de Bolsas in Maputo, did the parents learn the true extent of the problem.
The deadline for submitting applications to the Portuguese Directorate General for Higher Education (DGES) ended on 18 August.
The petition, requesting the acceptance of applications on an exceptional basis, was delivered to various entities in Mozambique and Portugal this Monday (September 6).
Some students and guardians were already in Portugal dealing with accommodation and other logistical matters when they heard the unwelcome news, the document adds.
The petition speaks of the risk of a “postponed future” for the candidates and notes that families that have already made “large investments in this process, namely with visas, accommodation and other [expenses]”.
Lusa tried without success to contact the Mozambique Scholarship Institute.
