Yesterday, LASIGE welcomed a delegation from Angola’s science funding agency, Fundação para o Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (FUNDECIT), along with representatives from the Angolan Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation (Ministério do Ensino Superior, Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação – MESCTI). This visit was part of the “Attractive and Sustainable Research and Development Institutions” initiative and funded by the European Union-Angola Dialogues Programme through both FUNDECIT (Angola) and FCT (Portugal) funding agencies.

The Angolan delegation was accompanied by members from FCT. This visit is one of several undertaken to explore selected R&D institutions in Portugal. The meetings promoted strategic dialogue between the funding agencies and the research institutions, focusing on models of management, evaluation, and the promotion of scientific research, while emphasising alignment with international standards. The mission seeks to strengthen the capabilities of the Angolan National System for Science, Technology, and Innovation (SNCTI).

LASIGE was honoured to be called to contribute to this cooperation effort and share its experience in evaluation processes, addressing challenges, and ensuring quality in research strategy that aligns with international agendas in Science and Technology. Our unit has been recognised as “Excellent” by FCT for two consecutive evaluation periods: 2018-2023 and 2013-2017.