FCT hosted the 16th Meeting of the 5+5 Dialogue on Research, Innovation, and Higher Education

During Portugal's presidency and Mauritania's vice-presidency ofthe 5+5 Dialogue on Research, Innovation, and Higher Education, the FCT hosted the 16th Meeting of the Group of Senior Officials (GSO) on October 10 and 11, 2024.

This meeting, attended by delegates from member countries—Algeria, France, Libya, Italy, Mauritania, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Tunisia, and Spain—contributed to the monitoring and evaluation of the 2023–2024 work plan and future 2024–2026 work plan, as well as to the preparation of the 6th Ministerial Conference, which will take place in Lisbon on December 6, 2024.Ministerial Conference, which will take place in Lisbon on December 6, 2024.

The meeting also saw the active participation of the European Commission and the Union for the Mediterranean, in providing political support for this Dialogue and the implementation of actions, and the Arab Maghreb Union.

Several commitments were made by all countries, in an atmosphere of close cooperation and collaboration, and several meetings were scheduled until the Ministerial Conference.

The Mediterranean – Atlantic: share of experiences on research, innovation, higher education, and employability workshop was also held as part of this meeting. It was open to participants from all countries involved and co-organized by Portugal and Italy. The aim of this workshop was to share experiences and initiatives, and it was attended by several international experts and featured testimonials from young researchers about their career paths.