The Algarve Tech Hub (ATH) now has a ambassador in the Government. Ana Abrunhosa, Minister of Territorial Cohesion, was this Tuesday at the premises of VisualForma, in Faro, to learn about the Technological Pole project that will be born in the Algarve capital, was enthusiastic about what she saw and heard and promised to include in her speeches the message that there is an ecosystem of innovation that makes the Algarve region “more than tourism”.
«I was completely convinced to be an ambassador for the Algarve Tech Hub! And one that will say: in the Algarve there is good tourism, but the Algarve is not just tourism», said Ana Abrunhosa, in an exclusive interview to Sul Informação.
Our newspaper was the only one to accompany the working meeting held by the minister and the Assistant Secretaries of State and Regional Development and Interior Enhancement, Carlos Miguel and Isabel Ferreira, with representatives of the different entities involved in the Algarve Tech Hub, namely with Algarve Evolution, which brings together more than three dozen technology companies in the Algarve, including the host VisualForma, and Algarve STP, the institutional hat of the technological pole, constituted by the University of Algarve, through CRIA, by Câmaras de Faro, Loulé, Olhão, Lagos and Portimão and by ANJE.
In the end, the minister admitted having had a different perception of the Algarve's economic dynamics. «I already had the notion that the Algarve was not just tourism, but I left here even more convinced, because I heard the actors involved in this dynamic and in this very interesting project in person», she said.
“My presence here is testimony that the Government wants to help spread the word. Algarve Tech Hub. From today, whenever I talk about the Algarve, this dimension will be part of my speech», he added.
The minister considered that the Algarve project stands out positively.
«I think that the brand that was created here, Algarve Tech Hub, as I had the pleasure to testify, has already done the difficult thing. Already created the and only now is she worried about the hardware», which, in this case, is the building where the technology center will be installed.
And the most difficult thing, in Ana Abrunhosa's view, “was getting companies and public entities to associate themselves. Here the managing entity of the Technological Park has already been created and it does not physically exist yet».
“This competition with cooperation is something that companies need. They need to cooperate in what allows them to add value: in training their human resources and in internationalization. The brand, the concept itself and the recognition by the European Union of the existence, here, of a Digital Innovation Hub, are very important,” he added.
The delegation of the Ministry of Territorial Cohesion was in Faro to listen to good part, but also to get to know the bad part, that is, the problems that the promoters of this project are struggling with. It was, in fact, several times that Ana Abrunhosa urged the successive speakers to diagnose what they considered to be the main obstacles and to point out ways in which the Government could help.
Cláudio Martins and Pedro Alves, from VisualForma, Vanessa Nascimento, from Algarve Evolution, and João Guerreiro, who represented Algarve STP, did not make requests and pointed out several issues. And the most pressing ones seem to be the question of housing and the attraction of human resources.
These are two problems that, in a way, are linked, bearing in mind that the difficulty of finding a house prevents the region from being able to bring in talent from abroad. But there are also issues related to the legalization of workers.
«The problem that was diagnosed to us today has two dimensions. On the one hand, there is the issue of the area of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) being under great development in the Algarve and requiring human resources that come, above all, from other countries. The request that was made to us was to streamline the processes of entry into the country of foreign workers," said Ana Abrunhosa, qq in statements to Sul Informação.
The Government, he assured, "has been very attentive to this situation" and has even created "a facilitating mechanism, which is the tech visa. However, according to what has been transmitted to us here, this instrument, being a facilitator, continues to be associated with a very bureaucratic process. Bearing this in mind, we are going to speak with other Government colleagues who have this responsibility and convey this concern».
Another problem is the issue of housing, “namely, young people who want to settle down have difficulty finding affordable homes. This problem exists in other parts of the country, but, in the Algarve, it is aggravated by the great competition that exists on the part of the tourist sector».
“In this aspect, I think that local authorities have a very important role. There is a set of instruments and support for urban regeneration, aimed at housing», said Ana Abrunhosa.
Vanessa Nascimento, from Algarve Evolution, agrees that the lack of housing is a serious problem and adds mobility difficulties in the Algarve region to the cake.
“I think companies are interested in settling where workers have quality of life. We have a whole new concept of work, namely distance work, but what is certain is that people need certain conditions, to have easy access to places, to go shopping, to have schools for their children», he illustrated .
“We have to work, both in mapping and in the construction of new infrastructure. And mobility in the Algarve, right now, is a big problem. For better or worse, houses are being found, but they are expensive. It becomes very unattractive for people to come here. We are trying, as far as possible. But we need something superior, at the political level, that gives us some help», he added.
As for the association it represents, it already brings together 34 companies «and more to come. And we are just not anymore, at this moment, because there is still no place to place companies and their workers».
João Guerreiro, former dean of UAlg and the father of the Technological Pole, which will have its physical component at the Penha Campus of that higher education institution, also spoke of the need to attract new business actors – albeit with consideration.
«It is in our hands to choose the partners and technicians we want to attract to the region. It is not, even so, a Spartan team, with very strict criteria. Given our conditions and what we want to do, the idea is to expand this project as much as possible», he said.
Before returning to Lisbon, Ana Abrunhosa left «a very positive note for what has been done, but also a challenge to make themselves known to the country».
João Guerreiro assures that this disclosure is already being made and that it is part of the plans of the Algarve Tech Hub.
“We know each other very well, we have a very solid and robust partnership. But all this has to go beyond our borders and those of the Algarve, hence this line of finding new partners and internationalizing our activities is part of our action program», said the former rector.
Here, the Government can help when it comes to finding funding. “The government can help because, in a lot of things, we need financial leverage. And the programs, sometimes, are either slow in evaluating applications or have very selective criteria and oriented towards realities other than our own».
“What I conveyed to the Minister is that we should have greater attention from the Government with regard, above all, to financial support programs, regardless of whether we can compete for them in an open and competitive way. We do not want free access to funds. We are sure of the quality of the project we are implementing and the network we are creating», concluded João Guerreiro.
Photos: Hugo Rodrigues|Sul Informação
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