Knowledge and Innovation
The development strategy based on knowledge, technology and innovation is one of the main drivers of the changes which are going on. From an early age, the Portuguese are prepared for the global market: English is compulsory, and the Portuguese laptop computer known as the Magalhães, (the name of the Portuguese Navigator Magellian) developed especially for basic education, has become one of the main learning tools.
The agreement with MIT provides for long-term collaboration to expand research and education in Portugal in the emerging field of engineering systems. With this agreement the Government aims to integrate large-scale, complex networks with a strong social and economic impact in areas such as energy, transport, information systems and telecommunications.
Partnerships for the Future, a program which brings together Portuguese entities and international institutions of excellence, has already resulted in the International Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL ), in Braga, the Information and Communication Technologies Institute, ICTI (in partnership with the Carnegie Mellon University), the Colaboratory for Emerging Technologies, CoLab, (in collaboration with the University of Texas in Austin) and the Fraunhofer Portugal Program (in collaboration with the
Fraunhofer Gesellschaft).
Portugal has become a laboratory for adopting new technologies at home. Its conviction and ambition has attracted major electronics companies such as Apple, Nokia, Siemens and Cisco. The trick has been to facilitate the interaction between research and the private sector in specially developed science and technology centres.
Technological Plan
Knowledge & Information Society