Lagoa Council has provided 300 tablets and 150 other electronic devices with internet access to local students.
The equipment was delivered on Thursday, April 23 to local schools to be distributed among students who have been unable to take part in virtual classes during these exceptional circumstances.
The equipment was donated with the help of several other institutions, such as the local parish councils, the Rotary Club and EPIS – the Association of Entrepreneurs for Inclusion. All in all, the initiative represented a €75,000 investment.
In a statement to the press, Lagoa Council said that as soon as the government declared the State of Emergency on March 18, it started compiling a list of the students who did not have internet access.
The council adds that the goal is to ensure equal educational opportunities for all students when it comes to distance learning during the lockdown.
The initiative, which was also supported by the municipal school groups, is part of the local mayor Luís Encarnação’s overriding objective to “not leave anyone behind” at a time when most citizens are being impacted in one way or another by the pandemic.
Several local councils throughout Portugal have been distributing tablets and other electronic gadgets to students who did not have access to the internet. Last month, Portimão Council also announced it would be providing 884 tablets to disadvantaged students from the first to ninth grade (click here).
