The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, presided over the meeting held this Tuesday accompanied by the Minister of Universities, Science and Innovation and Culture, Migdalia Machín, with the triple objective of informing about the next actions planned by the Government of the Canary Islands aimed at the aerospace sector in the Canary Islands, to constitute the RIS3 CAN Community of Astrophysics, Space and Aeronautics, as well as to share visions and identify opportunities, synergies and strategic projects.
In this sense, Fernando Clavijo highlighted "the strategic projection of the aerospace industry in the Canary Islands, a sector of great socio-economic impact, which is experiencing extraordinary growth, not only in the Canary Islands, but throughout the world."
The President of the Canary Islands referred to the great potential for the development of the aerospace sector in the Canary Islands due to its geographical conditions, its geostrategic position and its infrastructures. For this reason, last June, the sector of Astrophysics, Space and Aeronautics was declared a strategic area of the Government of the Canary Islands for its potential for the economic and social development of the Canary Islands and for its contribution to the diversification of our economy, the attraction of talent or the increase of employability.
Fernando Clavijo announced that the Presidency of the Government of the Canary Islands will assume the leadership of the Canary Islands Aerospace Strategy, which will be coordinated through the General Directorate of Organic Coordination and Strategic Projects. The construction of this strategy will be carried out in a participatory manner, trying to bring together the visions and proposals of all the public and private agents involved in the sector. "Together we can make the Canary Islands a global benchmark in this field and build a future of opportunities for all," he stressed.
In this same line, the Minister of Universities, Science and Innovation and Culture of the Canarian Executive, Migdalia Machín, affirmed that "the Canary Islands has all the potential to become a world model in the aerospace industry" given that the islands have "talent, infrastructure and a competitive fiscal environment, but the most important thing is that we have a clear vision of where we want to go."
Under the title Strategic Projection of the Aerospace Sector in the Canary Islands, this meeting was organized in collaboration between the General Directorate of Organic Coordination and Strategic Projects of the Presidency of the Government and the Canary Islands Agency for Research, Innovation and Information Society (ACIISI), promoting the participation of public and private entities to establish a joint strategy for the sector.
During the meeting, the advantages and potential of the Astrophysics, Space and Aeronautics Industry were presented, as well as the vision of the sector and of agents who participated in the event and collaborative participation formulas were proposed for the development of strategic projects.
The event, which took place at the headquarters of the Presidency of the Government of the Canary Islands in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, began with the institutional presentation by President Fernando Clavijo and Valentín Martínez, director of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands (IAC). Subsequently, David Pérez-Dionis, General Director of Organic Coordination and Strategic Projects, and Lorena Muñoz, Managing Partner of Effectia Innovation Solutions, spoke, addressing the importance of the aerospace industry as a strategic sector.
Likewise, the RIS3 CAN Community of Astrophysics, Space and Aeronautics was constituted, a fundamental platform for the development of projects in these sectors, after the presentations of Jesús Conde, from the Canary Islands Agency for Research, Innovation and Information Society (ACIISI), and Alberto Santana, general director of Grupo Plan B.
Finally, various participating entities presented their perspectives on the strategic opportunities in the aerospace sector. Javier Franco, director of ACIISI, closed the event presenting the conclusions and the next steps to follow.