House Speaker László Kövér said Hungarian universities must serve as strong basic institutions of Hungarian sovereignty in addition to successfully participating in the international higher education scene.
During an academic year opening event in Budapest, Kövér said the structural changes under way in higher education serve that goal. Under a broader scheme, the operations of several universities are being taken over from the state by separate foundations, allowing the universities greater autonomy and enabling them to adapt even more swiftly to changing economic and social conditions, he said.
“Greater independence must however not mean gradual departure from Hungarian reality, from national and social expectations,” Kövér said. He said university autonomy had to be used for strengthening rather than destroying Hungarian cultural sovereignty.
