The 26th annual meeting of the Association of Universities of Portuguese Language (AULP), hosted by the Universidade de Timor Lorosa'e (UNTL), was held from 29 June to 1 July. The theme of this year’s meeting is ‘academic mobility and globalisation within the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP) and Macao’. It is the first time that the AULP’s annual meeting has been held in East Timor.

The Board of Administrators meeting, whose main purpose was to review the activity report of the AULP, was held on 29 June, chaired by Prof Rui Martins, president of the AULP and representative of UM rector. One of the key items on the agenda was the AULP’s activity plan for the next three years, which was initiated by UM and jointly developed by members of the Board of Administrators.

The Board of Administrators meeting was followed by the opening ceremony of the 26th annual meeting of the AULP. The ceremony was attended by Francisco Guterres Lobo, former president of the National Parliament of East Timor; António Conceição, minister of education of East Timor; Francisco Martins, rector of UNTL; and Rui Martins, president of the AULP and representative of UM rector.

UM was elected president of the AULP for a three-year term (2014-2017) at the association’s 24th annual meeting. Composed of more than 140 universities and other research and educational institutions in CPLP countries and Macao, the AULP is dedicated to promoting communication among its members as well as the development of education and the Portuguese language worldwide.