Huambo – The Secretary of State for Science, Technology and Innovation, Alice de Ceita e Almeida, on Friday called on higher education institutions to be more proactive in researching ways to prevent and mitigate climate change.
Alice de Ceita e Almeida was speaking at “Academy/Society Dialogue Forum on agricultural and livestock sector, opened Thursday, in an initiative of the José Eduardo dos Santos University, within the framework of the Higher Education Support Program.
The Secretary of State said that climate change has a particular negative impact on the agricultural and livestock sector, as it constitutes society's main threats, with implications for all dimensions of sustainable development, thus requiring the strengthening of research and innovation in scientific knowledge, with a focus on fighting causes and effects at country level.
To this end, she said that higher education institutions are called upon, within the framework of their responsibilities, to develop more research and investigation work on methods and measures for prevention, mitigation and control of the effects of the natural phenomenon.
He underlined that desertification, forest fires, soil erosion and impoverishment, the reduction of water resources, overexploitation and loss of biodiversity constitute unequivocal signs of the urgency of triggering activities that help to make efficient use of resources natural resources and, at the same time, ensure the integrity of the environment, as a factor in the socio-economic development of the country.
Food safety and environment
On the occasion, the Secretary of State made it known that concern for food safety and the environment constitutes one of the priority aspects of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, in order to accelerate the technological transition, promoting a sustainable economy that allows environmental, economic and social challenges.
He added that these challenges are related to the sustainable production and management of agriculture, livestock, forestry resources, the agro-food chain, protection of agricultural crops, health and animal welfare, the production and transformation of biomass and the mitigation and adaptation to climate change.
She said they are also related to the growing demand for healthier, safer and higher quality foods and biofuels.
For this reason, she added, the national agricultural and livestock sector must have the vision of being a leader in products that stand out for their nutritional quality and food safety, betting on the unique and differentiating characteristics of national agricultural and livestock products, based on a strong research and development component.
Academia/society Dialogue Forum on the agricultural and livestock sector, which closed on Friday, has the participation of researchers, researchers, academics, professors, university students, businessmen and members of civil society from Angola, Cuba, France and Italy, and it is a platform for linking higher education institutions, private companies, civil society and local public bodies. VKY/ALH/jmc
