The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Mozambican Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education have signed a memorandum to promote innovation in the country, they announced today in a statement.

The UNDP will work with the government through its Acceleration Lab to design a national platform that facilitates "the sharing of ideas and innovative solutions for the sustainable development of Mozambican society", with a focus on the socio-economic and environmental areas.

The memorandum also provides for "the promotion of events and other means of training Mozambican innovators and entrepreneurs", as well as "the promotion of actions aimed at stimulating the spirit of innovation in society".

"The lack of adequate infrastructure for scientific research, reduced public funding" and the low "qualification of human resources" are challenges facing the country in the technological area, said the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Daniel Nivagara, quoted in the document.

The Mozambican government hopes that the memorandum of understanding will help to improve the context.

The Acceleration Lab is a UNDP project launched in 2019 that aims to promote innovative methodologies and solutions for sustainable development in the different countries in which it operates, in line with the UN agency's technical support role. (Lusa)