Sánchez announces the creation of a National Scientific Advisory Office to promote Spain as "a country by and for science"

National Museum of Science and Technology (MUNCYT), A Coruña

During his speech, the chief executive announced the creation of a National Scientific Advisory Office, which will promote and coordinate the use of empirical evidence and scientific knowledge to improve decision-making and public policy design.

"It will help to build bridges between the Government and regional and local governments, and among the talent that exists in universities, to improve the evaluation of these public policies". The president, who was accompanied at the event by the Minister for Education, Vocational Training and Sports and Government Spokesperson, Pilar Alegría, and the Minister for Science, Innovation and Universities, Diana Morant, explained that this will "help our country to advance in what we always wanted and were never able to be: a country by and for science".

With this National Scientific Advice Office, Spain joins countries such as the UK, the United States, Canada, Japan and New Zealand, which in recent years have set up scientific advice units and mechanisms. Sánchez stressed that "in politics we also need the advice of science to shed greater light".

The chief executive recalled the experience of COVID-19 to underline that he is "eternally grateful to science because it saved the country, it saved many lives". He also highlighted the importance of science in the face of climate change, concluding that "any country that wants to prosper must be committed to science".

"Talking about the future is talking about science", he reaffirmed. "And that is especially true here today, in A Coruña, in the host city of what will be the first Artificial Intelligence Oversight Agency, because it will be here, in Galicia, in A Coruña, where we will be working closely with a fascinating technology", he recalled.

Pioneering time, commitment to scientific progress

"This is a time for pioneering women", said the president, who added that regarding gender inequality, "it is important that you fill these spaces, because there is no profession to which you cannot dedicate your lives". "It is not only social justice but also intelligence that there is equality," he said. Sánchez used the example of Sara García Alonso, the first Spanish woman astronaut, who was present at the event, as a point of reference "so that hundreds of thousands of young people, boys and girls, can tell themselves that they can do it too", because "in this possibility, in this small change of outlook, many vocations are opened up".

The President stressed the Government's commitment to scientific progress. "We are committed to education, vocational training, universities, innovation and science," he said. In this respect, he reviewed the executive's actions, including the approval of an additional €1 billion in additional funding earmarked for science, the promotion of major reforms such as the Science Act, and the Vocational Training Act, with €2 billion.

Spain exceeds the European average in the number of women scientists and innovators, with 14% more women researchers than in 2020, although the president recalled that while "justice and equality are conquered, they are not a given- we must act", adding that "we are doing things right" and "this is a huge success for society as a whole", because "the future is yours".

Non official translation