The President of the Republic addressed a message of congratulations to Professor Maria Manuel Mota for the award of 2013 Pessoa Prize.

Following is the text of the message from President Cavaco Silva:

“I congratulate Professor Maria Manuel Mota for the award of the 2013 Pessoa Prize, one of the most prestigious national prizes.

The award of the Pessoa Prize to Professor Maria Manuel Mota is an incentive for national scientific research. The prize winner’s youth and the superior quality of her scientific work on behalf of the fight against malaria is an example to all young Portuguese scientists.

Science – research and development – is an area in which Portugal has been treading a very positive path and which should remain in the crux of the national agenda. This Prize greatly contributes towards providing this objective with visibility. For this reason too I congratulate the jury of the Pessoa Prize.

I must equally congratulate Porto and Lisbon universities which, amongst other scientific organizations, have had an eminent role in the activity of Professor Maria Manuel Mota, currently main researcher of the Institute of Molecular Medicine of the Faculty of Medicine of Lisbon University.

Aníbal Cavaco Silva”