Air conditioning lacking in many university halls of residence

Air conditioners are non-existent or poorly maintained at student halls of residence in Athens, residents have told the relevant authorities.

Students have requested the Institute for Youth and Lifelong Learning and the Ministry of Education to ensure that proper air-conditioning systems are installed in the residencies.

At the large University of Athens residence in Zografrou, which houses 1,060 students, the air conditioning systems are out of order.

The dorm on Patission Avenue in central Athens for students of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), which houses 247 students, has no air conditioning systems at all.

“We cannot even turn on our individual cooling units we have because the building is so old that there is a risk of a blackout,” students said.

In new residences built for NTUA students, some 50 students live in rooms that do not have air conditioning and another 80 in rooms in which the air conditioning is under-performing.

Students have called a protest rally at 11 a.m. on Monday to demand “that all the damage to the air conditioning systems be repaired now as an emergency, that portable air conditioners be provided for all rooms and that common air-conditioned spaces be created.”

Air conditioning is also lacking in many university halls and lecture theatres were students do exams.