2nd Science and Technology Week Portugal – Nigeria

Portugal is hosting the second edition of the Portugal - Nigeria Science and Technology Week from December 2 to 4. The event is organized and promoted by the Ciência Viva Agency with the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), under the "GoPortugal - Global Science and Technology Parterships Portugal" programme and the "Initiative knowledge for development, ikdf" of the Government of Portugal.

These meetings are part of Nigeria's participation in the creation of the AIR Center (Atlantic International Research Center) in the Azores. The first edition was held last year in Abuja, the Nigerian capital. This year Portugal will host the Nigerian delegation, which will make several visits to national research centers.

The program of the visit will begin at the Pavilion of Knowledge on December 2, with a bilateral meeting between the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor, and his Nigerian counterpart, Ogbonnaya Onu. The following days will see visits to national research units by the Nigerian delegation, made up of leaders and researchers from various sectors of activity, namely in relation to space sciences and technologies, biotechnology, veterinary and animal disease research, marine and industry, production technologies and industrial cooperation, renewable energies, energy efficiency and entrepreneurship.

Nigeria is Africa's second largest economy, with nearly 200 million inhabitants. It is one of the countries participating in the creation of the AIR Centre, and the installation of a hub on applications of space technologies is planned.

The AIR Centre (Atlantic International Research Centre) was established in the Florianópolis Declaration, signed on November 20, 2017 in Brazil. It is based on an international and intergovernmental platform geared towards the development of research activities in the areas of climate, land, space and oceans, together with the promotion of new economic activities and the creation of skilled jobs in the Atlantic regions.