A private college in Lisbon, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, says it is offering scholarships to 130 citizens of lusophone countries or Macao.

The university posted on its website a written announcement saying five of the scholarships are reserved for students from Macao.

The university says the second phase of the application process begins on September 1 and ends on September 22.

The scholarships are part of a drive to turn out graduates qualified to help the development of Portuguese-speaking parts of the world, the Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias says.

The Cabo Verdean state-run news agency, Inforpress, reports that the scholarships are the result of an agreement struck in 2005 by the owners of the college and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries.