The Minister of Science and Innovation, Pedro Duque, participated this Friday in two videoconferences chaired by the Croatian Minister of Science and Education, Blaženka Divjak, as the current President of the Competitiveness Council, together with the European Commissioner for Innovation and Research, Mariya Gabriel , the Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, and the EU Research and Space Ministers, with the aim of analyzing the role of research and innovation in the framework of the European recovery and analyzing the socio-economic impact of the EU space programs. In the first of the meetings, Minister Duque has proposed focusing efforts on two main actors of R&I policies that will especially contribute to accelerating the economic recovery and avoiding imbalances between countries and regions: researchers and small and medium-sized companies. .
In the first virtual meeting, the EU Research and Innovation ministers exchanged views on investments and R&I measures in the framework of Europe's economic recovery, to boost green and digital transitions, with the whole economic recovery instruments that the EU is implementing.
Participants have reflected on the lessons learned in managing the health, social and economic crisis caused by COVID-19, from the point of view of R&I, and how investments in this field can help drive creation Of jobs. Furthermore, they have discussed how all this experience can be incorporated into the transformation of the European Research Area.
In his speech, Minister Duque has defended the role of research and innovation to guarantee the social and economic well-being of Europeans and has stressed that investments in R&I will be key to boost future job opportunities. Specifically, it has proposed focusing efforts on the role that two main actors may have in this objective: researchers and small and medium-sized companies.
Firstly, he has called for the Member States and the EU to join forces to invest decisively in the next generation of researchers and innovators and to create synergies between national and European programs. In addition, he called to take advantage of the opportunity presented in the EU's recovery plan to launch the necessary structural reforms that allow researchers to provide a stable and predictable scientific career, and thus end precariousness.
It has also opted to strengthen the R&I ecosystem and prioritize investments to consolidate and improve research facilities and infrastructures, including open science, open data and the necessary digital and computing services, to foster international collaboration in research. .
That said, the minister has highlighted the role of small and medium-sized enterprises in the economic recovery and, in particular, has argued that in order to create a stronger industrial base, Member States should focus their joint efforts on increasing public investment in I + i for SMEs, startups and midcaps.
SMEs, added the minister, need an appropriate mix of R&I policies, including subsidies, financial instruments and others such as public procurement. As an example, he explained that in Spain the Innovative Public Procurement Office is being consolidated with new programs to help SMEs and other companies.
On the other hand, the minister has also encouraged European countries to commit themselves in a coordinated way to research and development in biomedicine and clinical research, in cooperation with national health systems, to ensure preparedness and resistance to future challenges such as the one that COVID-19 has supposed.
Following this first meeting, a second videoconference has been held to address the socio-economic impact of the EU's space programs. Specifically, European ministers have discussed how to integrate the use of EU space data and services to promote recovery after this crisis and how space systems and infrastructure can help to advance more rapidly in sustainable development.
In his speech, Minister Duque has defended the commitment to the future Space Program of the European Union. In this sense, he has emphasized the potential, even without being properly exploited, that space activities entail, from global connectivity, to the digital transformation of society and the so-called 'Internet of Things', including transportation, energy, agriculture and biodiversity, all without forgetting its key role in security and defense.
Another challenge, raised by the pandemic, on which the minister has reflected has been the need to promote the use of data and services from space programs, promoting their use by all public administrations and incorporating new regulations in this regard. in matters of European regulation that promote the commercial uses of space programs.
The minister pointed out that European space programs, such as Galileo or Copernicus, as well as those of ESA or EUMETSAT, have contributed greatly to expanding the scope and impact of the space sector, and stressed that the joint development of everything Space ecosystem will create optimal conditions for sustainable growth and technological autonomy of Europe in a new global order.
In addition, he said, it will also contribute to guaranteeing a key role for the EU in the fight against some of the new dangers of societies, such as digital poverty, which affects more than 3,000 million people today, and will allow Europe to participate in safely in peacekeeping missions using the GOVSATCOM component.