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Today, the newly constructed Campus of Masaryk University in Brno (Czech Republic) was solemnly inaugurated. The Campus is part of a unique project implemented with the financial support of the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Union’s Bank, which provided a loan of EUR 95 million in 2002 to the Czech Republic. The second component of the project included the refurbishment of existing buildings in the city centre.
The project co-financed by the Bank was the first in the sector of health and education in a country of Central and Eastern Europe which joined the European Union in 2004.
This pilot project experienced a series of delays caused by various factors, ranging from land restitution issues to tendering and financing difficulties. Despite these unexpected obstacles, the investment − also supported also by the State budget and the university’s own financial resources − is now becoming a significant landmark for the City of Brno, the second largest city in the Czech Republic, and a remarkable element of the Czech education system.
The University Campus, situated near University Hospital Brno in the city district of Bohunice, will greatly contribute to the development of Masaryk University. The new campus covers an area of more than 42 hectares and will accommodate a growing number of students, provide a wider range of academic courses and research activities and increase substantially the quality of higher education in the fields of study offered by Masaryk University. The buildings are divided into two major areas: Integrated Laboratories for Biomedical Technologies and an Academic Research and Teaching Complex.
Part of the EIB loan has helped to upgrade older university buildings and financed the acquisition of state-of-the-art teaching and research equipment.
Background:
The EIB, the European Union’s bank, finances economically viable investment projects that contribute towards the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the EU Member States.
The EIB has been financing projects fostering the integration of the Czech Republic into the European Union since 1990. Up to now the EIB’s lending commitments in the Czech Republic have exceeded EUR 13.7 billion. The Czech Republic is the second largest EIB borrower by volume among the Member States that joined the Union after 2004. The EIB’s lending operations cover all of the country’s economic sectors, ranging from basic infrastructure to manufacturing and services, including support for small and medium-sized companies through local financial institutions, and the development of a knowledge-based economy.
