Welcome to the Official page of the Presidency of the Portuguese Republic

I am very pleased to be here at the Research Council of Norway, a power house for science, technology and innovation.

I appreciate the presence of so many Portuguese stakeholders – marine scientists, eminent scholars, and blue biotechnology entrepreneurs and their companies – and I am grateful to their Norwegian counterparts who, together, made this remarkable event possible.

We are living in a fast changing world. This is certainly true for Europe and even more for Portugal, where a lot has changed over the last few years. In particular, the economy and key public policies are changing. Still, we need to open new avenues for sustainable economic growth and job creation.

With this in mind, I have been a strong advocate of the need for Portugal to allocate more of its resources to developing its maritime – or blue – economy and convert its small base into a strong economic source for the country. This line of thought has permeated into the national policy and the Minister for Agriculture and Sea, here with me, has been its key promoter.

A new policy demands new partners to develop our maritime policy and economy.

As we see it, Norway is clearly a desirable partner. This is why we are here and why this event is so important – an occasion for so many Norwegian and Portuguese scientists and companies to share common interests and forge their own links.

I am sure that it is possible to build up a strategic partnership between Norway and Portugal on ocean affairs, aiming at the promotion of our blue economies.

The Letter of Intent and the Memorandum of Understanding, which were just signed, are important steps towards this kind of partnership. I commend the Ministries for Science of Norway and Portugal, as well as the Research Council and the Foundation for Science and Technology for their vision and I invite you to work hard for their implementation.

Norway and Portugal have a lot more in common than people tend to see at a first glance: our countries are two of the most western and Atlantic-oriented countries of Europe. They are both sea bound countries with a rich maritime history. In geographical terms, they are two maritime giants of Europe. Marine sciences and research are a key priority for both countries and the seafood sectors are large in the economies of both Norway and Portugal.

We are also quite complementary: Norway is located at the gate of the Arctic Ocean and Portugal sits just next to the Mediterranean Sea and at the gate of the South Atlantic Basin. You have large fish stocks and we have a wide variety of marine living resources with a biodiversity that is second to none in Europe. Not to mention, of course, that you capture the cod fish that we traditionally consume.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The marine science domain is a key area where I think Norway and Portugal can play a leading role in Europe. We can cooperate on bilateral projects including in the framework of Horizon 2020; and we can cooperate to achieve marine scientific progress in other parts of the world, including in the Portuguese speaking countries of Africa.

Energy, including offshore energy, is another key area for cooperation. We are about to start prospecting for fossil fuels in our coastal waters and should aim at prospecting in the Exclusive Economic Zone. Norwegian experience in these areas would be very useful. The same is valid for renewable forms of energy, such as offshore floating wind parks and macro-algae farms for biofuels.

Marine biotechnology and under-water technologies will also be major industries in the future. By developing marine bio resources and applying biotechnology, we will be able to multiply the value we extract from the sea as a natural capital, without contributing to its environmental degradation.

Also, we should not forget more traditional areas of the blue economy in this dialogue between Portugal and Norway. In this context, I am pleased with the signing of a MoU between the Port of Lisbon and the Norwegian Port Authority, as well as with the signing of another MoU between the Institute of Marine Research of Bergen and IPMA, our public laboratory for fisheries research. Ports and fisheries are clearly important sectors for the future of our blue economies.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have no doubt that by joining efforts to build up more sustainable economies, Portugal and Norway would achieve much more than by working on their own.

I wish you a very fruitful day of discussions and I thank you for your attention.