Portugal and China sign a cooperation agreement on research and innovation
News Economy Europe - Portugal and China signed a cooperation agreement on research and innovation, on October 19th, 2026. The Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, Fernando Alexandre, and the Minister of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China, Yin Heju, signed a Joint Declaration in Beijing, which foresees the development of a program for research funding, researcher mobility, collaboration between scientific institutions and companies, and other cooperation instruments. The Portugal-China joint declaration foresees development in five priority areas of science and innovation:
Here are the 5 Priority Areas of the Portugal-China joint declaration for Science and Innovation:
1 - The ocean and the blue economy
2- Energy, climate, batteries and hydrogen
3- Agriculture, bioeconomy and food
4 - Health, healthy aging and medical technologies
5 - The conservation of cultural heritage through science
What is the Joint Portugal-China Action Program 2027-2030 for Science and Innovation?
Another outcome of the Portugal - China meeting is the commitment to develop, starting in 2027, a Joint Portugal-China Action Program 2027-2030 for Science and Innovation. Through technical meetings, the two countries will work on defining a cooperation framework that may include bilateral mechanisms for funding research and innovation, researcher mobility, support for technological collaboration between institutions and companies, and networks of joint laboratories and research consortia.
The Joint Declaration also highlights the importance of ensuring adequate conditions for safe, transparent and reciprocal scientific cooperation, respecting academic freedom, scientific integrity and the legislation applicable to each country, including at the European level in the case of Portugal.
Cooperation in research and innovation should also be linked to dialogue on Higher Education, with a view to, for example, strengthening opportunities for academic mobility and joint supervision of doctoral programs.
The official trip of Minister Fernando Alexandre and the Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, Helena Canhão, to China, with stops in Tianjin, Beijing and Shanghai, is part of the deepening of bilateral relations in the areas of Research, Innovation, Education and Higher Education.
The Joint Declaration establishes the basis for the continuation of that dialogue, providing for technical meetings in 2027 and the possibility of hosting the 11th Meeting of the Portugal-China Joint Commission on Science and Technology in Portugal in 2028.
The delegation accompanying the two government officials includes the presidents of the Agency for Research and
Innovation (AI2), João Barros, the Institute for Higher Education (IES, IP), Joaquim Mourato, the Council of Rectors of Portuguese Universities (CRUP), Luís Ferreira, the Coordinating Council of Higher Polytechnic Institutes (CCISP), Luís Loures, as well as rectors and researchers from 15 Portuguese institutions.
With a view to deepening existing cooperation and exploring new opportunities with Chinese institutions, the delegation visited Tianjin Foreign Studies University, Nankai University, including the College of Life Sciences, and the automotive company Launch Design, specifically its research and development center, all in Tianjin.
