Africa-Press – Cape verde. The Cape Verdean Prime Minister, Ulisses Correia e Silva, said today that the country wants to allocate 1.5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for scientific research, through public and private investments.
Cape Verde wants to allocate 1.5% of GDP to scientific research – PM
“ In Cape Verde, we want to reach 1.5% of GDP investment in scientific research, through public and private investments. A set of tax and financial incentives were recently created for this purpose ”, stated the head of Government.
When speaking at the closing of the first International Congress on Science, Innovation and Development in Lusophony, held at the Lusófona University, in São Vicente, the prime minister said that the Foundation for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Research & Development Fund, in government approval phase, their objective is to capture and mobilize international and domestic investment to promote science.
But also for the training of “highly competitive” staff, national scientific innovation and the promotion of scientific publications and university extension.
“ The intensification of educational, scientific and technological diplomacy must guarantee the densification of international cooperation in matters of education, research, innovation and mobility of researchers and higher education students”, Correia e Silva also highlighted, also defending the creation of an Erasmus of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), an idea shared with the Prime Minister of Portugal, António Costa.
The Cape Verdean Prime Minister said that the restructuring of Higher Education, of public universities into complementary areas of specialty, which is taking place in the country, has as a priority building “specialized responses” to regional development vocations through teaching, research applied science and the provision of specialized services.
And he gave as an example the creation of the Campus do Mar in S. Vicente, the expansion of the University of Cape Verde (Uni-CV) to the island of Fogo or the planned creation of the Higher Institute of Aeronautics and Tourism, on the island of Sal.
“ The Government encourages universities, public and private, to open themselves up to society and companies, national and foreign, as institutions for the promotion and transfer of knowledge, science, technology and research”, he showed .
He also considered the production of scientific knowledge, research and development and integration into networks for sharing experiences and good practices to be “fundamental ”.
The meeting, which was opened on Wednesday by the President of the Republic of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves, and was attended by the Vice-President of Angola, Esperança da Costa, included scientists and researchers from Cape Verde, Brazil, Portugal, Angola and Brazil.
Global health, research, energy transition and renewable energy, the role of civil society and businesspeople in scientific development, agriculture, tourism, heritage, education and digital transformation were some of the topics discussed during the congress.
In the final declaration, participants recommended, among other points, increased investment in research, diversification of sources and origins of resources, creating support infrastructures, support and evaluation of scientific production, creating and supporting the participation of researchers in networks of international work and a “ constant relationship ” between academics, scientists, population and citizenship.
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