Maria de Belém Roseira

Maria de Belém graduated in Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra in 1972. A lawyer and jurist, she embarked on a professional career in the field of Social Affairs from an early age. She held numerous positions over more than three decades, the last of which was dedicated to political activity, as Minister for Health, Minister for Equality and Member of Parliament in various Legislatures. She was President of the Parliamentary Health Committee, having developed an intense intervention that included the proposal of several important initiatives that marked the country’s progress, such as the Parity Law and the Medically Assisted Procreation Law or even the Law that allows the acquisition of nationality Portuguese by naturalization. She was President of the Commission of Inquiry into the situation that led to the nationalization of Banco Português de Negócios and into the inherent banking supervision, President of the General Assembly of the World Health Organization and President of the Socialist Party. She develops an intense activity in the area of volunteering, as a member of the management boards of several non-profit associations in the area of Social Economy. She was a member of the General Council of the University of Coimbra and is a member of the General Assembly of several Faculties and a member of the Council of the Ancient Military Orders. Lecturer at home and abroad, guest professor at several universities, she is also co-author of several publications and is the author of multiple articles in specialty journals. Along with several praises and awards, she was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Christ, presented by the President of the Republic in recognition of her career and, in 2022, with the title of Doctor Honoris Causa, by the European University.