Italy is taking stock of the progress achieved on scientific and technical cooperation with China with a view to strengthening it. A technical panel for the ‘development of scientific and technological cooperation with China’, a collegial body set up by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation met today at the Farnesina representatives of national research, industrial associations and major ministries, to coordinate activities by Italian research centres, universities and companies in China. The panel has already obtained several results, including a thorough study on China, dubbed ‘Studio Cina 2014’, a multi-sectorial analysis of Chinese scientific and industrial production systems as well as a strategy to promote Italy in science, technology and innovation (STI).
Furthermore the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Education, Health and the Environment, will contribute to funding international research projects under an Executive Protocol on scientific and technological cooperation with China which is to be signed soon The agreement provides for cofunding 14 new projects by means of a bilateral joint allocation of almost three million euros over the next three years. The Foreign Ministry, furthermore, has decided to strengthen its network of scientific attachés in China and has appointed two new attaches , Professor Roberto Pagani and Lorenzo Gonzo in Shanghai and Chongqing respectively. As regards future developments, the panelalso discussed the Innovation Forum, an annual event by Italy and China which was extremely successful last year, with more than 170 organisations taking part and 200 projects. An official tour to China to launch investment opportunities in research and development in Italy has also been discussed.
