Instead of continuing as a country that exports medium and low-tech products from the agricultural sector, Portugal has to export products of medium and high technology.
Cavaco Silva was opening the new headquarters of pharmaceutical company Novartis in Oeiras and said that investment in innovation and development is "crucial" for the country's future because innovation is the key factor for competitiveness.
"Portugal must continue to invest in education, knowledge, innovation, so as to stop being a country that exports most of its products as medium or low technology. We need to start to export products of medium and high technology," said our noble President who offered no hint as to where the money would come from for education, knowledge and innovation but possibly hoping the private sector would be so kind as to fill in the gaps in current provision.
For Cavaco Silva, Portugal has but two weaknesses, and both need to be fixed. It needs to turn knowledge into "products that can be traded" and, secondly it has to fill a "lack of competitive ability to attract funds from the European Union."
The head of state concluded that "Portugal is rated very poorly in these two areas" thus in danger of incurring the ire of thousands of Portugal’s able entrepreneurs and manufacturers.
The export growth in agricultural products is currently keeping Portugal’s balance of trade in a healthy state. The President’s words will give no encouragement to Assunçaso Cristas, Agricultural Minister, nor to the thousands of young unemployed that have turned to agriculture and horticulture with the government’s encouragement, even to the point of the state handing farms to would-be farmers on which to grow those very products that the President now declares passée.
