Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

The Government Programme sets as a national

priority

the fast scientific and technological development of

the country

and defines the Key figures and goals of that

development for the legislative period

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Quantitative goals

• Reaching 5.5 researchers/1000 active workers

• Increasing from 1.000 to 1.500 new PhD holders per year

• Increasing from 400 to 600 scientific publications per million inhabitants per year

• Trebling the number of patents registered in the European Patent Office and the US Patent Office

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

International indicators

• Increasing by 50% the number of new graduates in sciences and engineering per year

• Doubling public investment in scientific research, from 0.5% to 1.0% of the GDP

• Trebling private investment in R&D, which was only 0.24% of the GDP in 2003

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Scientific progress is a development

engine and a source of progress

• Public resources

• Broad social participation

• Growing appropriation of scientific and technological culture

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Main guidelines

• Investing in knowledge and in scientific and technical competence, measured at the highest international level

• Investing in human resources and in scientific and technological culture

• Investing in public and private R&D institutions, in their reinforcement, responsibility, organization and networking

• Investing in internationalization, quality and evaluation

• Investing in the economical valorisation of research

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Structural measures (Human Resources)

• Welcome of high-profile scientific and technical immigrants

• Launching competitions for programme contracts with scientific institutions aiming the financing individual research contracts for PhD holders

• Increasing the number of new PhD and post-PhD grants

• Creating grants for integration in research

• Welcoming researchers with permanent activity abroad

• Implementing an advanced training programme and PhDs in clinical research

• Creating or strengthening merit grants for students, especially in Science and Engineering areas

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Structural measures (Institutions)

• Following the State Laboratories reform programme

• Implementing new Associated Laboratories

• Revising the Multi-annual Financing Programme of every R&D Centres recognised by international assessment

• Implementing a scientific re-equipment programme

• Promoting the Research Projects Programme

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Structural measures (Higher Education)

• Creating invited chairs in Universities and research Institutions

• Supporting technological specialization programs created in polytechnic institutes

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Structural measures (Companies)

• Strengthening and promoting Research Consortia between Companies and R&D Centres

• Clarifying R&D budgets and programmes carried out in companies

• Re-launching the specific programme of insertion of PhD holders in companies

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Structural measures (Networks)

• Implementing common scientific equipment networks in State Laboratories

• Creating a network of large S&T international partnerships in association with international scientific organizations, foreign Universities and other top scientific and technological institutions

• Implementing the Thematic Research Network Programme

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

New initiatives

• Creating the National Grid Computing Infrastructure, INGRID

• Creating the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, INL

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

The establishment of this programme will involve an

increase in budget appropriations for the Ministry of

Science, Technology and Higher Education

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Organization of research centres and units

• re-evaluation and international evaluation

• suppression of units of insufficient quality

• strengthening of critical masses by aggregation of institutions

• compulsory creation of networks of resource

Portuguese American Post-Graduate Society

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)

• FCT was strengthened to function as a reference institution that guarantees the system of assessment and funding capable of assessing competences and international-level managers of science and technology

• FCT’s Scientific Councils organized according to international standards