the schools, colleges and the university were destroyed. Ninety-five per cent of school buildings in East Timor were destroyed. The UNTIM and Polytechnic buildings in Dili and in Hera, as well as the Nurses Institute, were looted, smashed and burnt with little surviving the onslaught. University students fanned across the country before the referendum in 1999 to work for the vote for independence, many being killed in the violence that followed. After the destruction students again went to regional areas to teach classes in burnt out buildings to keep the children learning and the schools open. They also organized classes for tertiary students when no other education facilities were operational. Post-Independence No funds had been budgeted for the university by UNTAET. Many of the former UNTIM and Polytechnic staff and students worked for a year with no pay to establish the university. Tight planning and active lobbying of donors by Dr Armindo Maia (acting rector and now Minister for Education, Youth and Cultural Affairs) and the then Minister for Education, Father Filomeno Jacob meant that the new university, despite its serious lack of resources, was able to commence teaching classes for 5,000 students and 1,500 bridging course students in November 2000. In September 2000, the cabinet allocated $1.3US million to the university from East Timor's education budget. The new National University of Timor Lorosa'e (UNTL) is an amalgamation of the old UNTIM and Polytechnic. It has moved to the former Technical High School in central Dili. Buildings have been renovated by a local firm, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The 'Câmara Municipal Lisboa' (Lisbon Municipal Council) funded and renovated the Faculty of Education and Economics buildings. The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and the Japanese government are assisting the rebuilding of the agricultural campus and engineering school at Hera. Many bilateral donors have preferred to fund scholarships for East Timorese in their own countries or to fund short course training offered by the Civil Service Academy for public servants already employed by the Transitional Administration. The university opened for classes on November 17, 2000 — two months later than originally envisaged due to reconstruction activities and the lack of resources. Most of the buildings were being rebuilt. Few of the classrooms had any furniture. There were virtually no teaching or curriculum resources for the newly appointed teaching staff. There was no accessible library,