Pellagonia” Dormitory to Close for Two Years, Around 500 Albanian Students Left Without Accommodation

Without electricity and with deteriorating conditions, the “Pellagonia” student dormitory in Skopje resembles an abandoned building. Its facilities are filled with dirt, while the furnishings are outdated, the rooms do not provide decent living conditions, the tiles are damaged and the ceiling has developed cracks. Until this spring, around 1,000 students from all parts of North Macedonia who were studying in Skopje were staying at the dormitory.

According to TV21 journalist Adnan Qaili, around 1,000 students were expected to be accommodated at “Pellagonia” on September 15, but the Ministry of Education has decided that the facility will undergo renovations lasting two years. As the tender has not yet been announced, around 500 Albanian students still have no solution for their accommodation in the new academic year.

During the works, photovoltaic panels are planned to be installed at the facility, along with insulation measures to improve energy efficiency. Dormitory director Orhan Aliu said the interventions are intended to avoid high electricity bills, which reach up to 1 million denars per month, as the facility is charged expensive rates rather than the tariffs applied to school buildings.

Aliu stressed that a large number of Albanian students choose this dormitory because of its proximity to “Mother Teresa” University and “Ss. Cyril and Methodius” University. The latter, he said, is closed for reconstruction this year, while it is still unknown where the students will be accommodated.

“Most Albanian students are accommodated here because of the location of ‘Mother Teresa’ University and ‘Ss. Cyril and Methodius’ University, which unfortunately is closed for reconstruction this year, and we do not know where the students will go… All students will be transferred to the other dormitories. The problem now is that the Pellagonia Dormitory and Seniçe Dormitory are closed; there may be a higher number of students. The problem of accommodating the students will now fall on the Ministry,” said Orhan Aliu.

The director of “Pellagonia” also spoke about what he said were misinterpretations concerning the Audit Office report for 2023–24. He denied claims of irregularities in the supply of food for the student cafeteria, explaining that quantities in the tender are measured in kilograms, not individual items, as was inaccurately reported by some media outlets.

“Here, we measure bread in kilograms: standard bread and cornbread cost 76 denars, while the other bread costs 70 denars; when calculated by the kilogram, it comes out cheaper than outside. The claim that gevrek pastries here cost 127 denars apiece is incorrect, because they are calculated by the kilogram: 10 pieces are counted, which proportionally comes to 14.7 denars per gevrek,” said Orhan Aliu.

The Ministry of Education confirmed to TV21 that the “Pellagonia” student dormitory has been temporarily closed and that construction work is expected to begin by the end of this year. However, the ministry said it is still unknown when the procedure to select the company will take place. /tv21