Stéphanie Obertin, Minister for Research and Higher Education, took part in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ministerial meeting on science and technology policy, which was held at the OECD headquarters in Paris on 23 and 24 April 2024.
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Group photo
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(fr. l. to r.) Nadia Ernzer, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Luxembourg to the OECD and Unesco; Stéphanie Obertin, Minister for Research and Higher Education; Jerry Sheehan, OECD Director, Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation.
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Group photo
The declaration adopted by the ministers at this meeting, whose theme was "Shared challenges, transformative actions", calls on the main stakeholders to approve a transformative action programme in the fields of science, technology and innovation, in order to combat climate change, promote the responsible development of science and technology based on shared values, and define measures to support international cooperation in these fields.
These transformative actions must be based on the values and principles contained in the Luxembourg Declaration on Building Trust and Reinforcing Democracy by putting people at the centre of science, technology and innovation.
In her various speeches at the ministerial meeting, Stéphanie Obertin highlighted the specific issues at stake for Luxembourg and her outlook on the challenges addressed.
"International cooperation in research and innovation is the key to tackling global challenges. No single country can solve challenges such as climate change or pandemics like COVID-19 on its own", said the Minister at the opening plenary session.
She stressed that "internationalisation and international collaboration are part of the DNA of Luxembourg's national research system". As one of the countries with the highest per capita contribution to development cooperation, Luxembourg's national research and innovation strategy, adopted at the end of 2019, explicitly recognises the importance of interaction between development cooperation policy and research policy.
During her speech to the sub-group on financing research and innovation to meet the climate challenge, the Minister stated that Luxembourg recognised the importance of close collaboration between research and innovation players in the field of green finance for the implementation of the Paris Agreement.
In this context, the Minister warned that it was important to ensure that social cohesion was not disrupted by transition policies, so as not to jeopardise taxpayer acceptance and support, and consequently the funding of research and innovation to meet the climate challenge. "The role of the social and human sciences in this area is vital in order to understand society so that we can better explain the ins and outs of these transition policies and provide support, such as the necessary changes to a more 'climate-positive' lifestyle, territorial planning or innovative mobility concepts, and accompany these transitions in a socially compatible way", she declared.
Speaking on the programme to promote transformative science, technology and innovation policies, Stéphanie Obertin pointed out that, given its small size, Luxembourg could not do without prioritising scientific fields and subjects. "Consequently, the additional resources that the Luxembourg government will be investing in research over the next few years through the various instruments of the Fonds national de la recherche (National Research Fund) will be used first and foremost to finance the transformation of industry and services, personalised health, sustainable and responsible development, and education for the 21st century."
The Minister concluded by stressing that "the importance of research in contributing to transformation policies is widely recognised across the different ministries and public administrations".
Press release by the Ministry for Research and Higher Education