Speech by the Vice-President of the Government - Communication

Vice-Presidência do Governo Regional

Full text of the speech delivered today by the Vice-President of the Government, Artur Lima, in Horta, during the discussion of the Plan and Budget for 2026:

“When Fernando Pessoa wrote the famous phrase ‘God wills, man dreams, the work is born’ in 1934, he certainly did not imagine what the world would be like 91 years later.

We live at a time when the present is the past, and the actual is on the verge of becoming obsolete.

This is why we must constantly adjust our activities and actions.

This is what the Vice-Presidency has been doing in its areas of competence!

The world is becoming increasingly digital, and the Azores are no exception.

But to promote digitisation, it is necessary to create solid foundations that can respond to our needs and also support new developments.

We have gone from 129 technical rooms, scattered across the nine islands of our archipelago, to two large-capacity data centres, located on two islands and operating in mirror mode. We are also completing the Mobile.Gov project, which aims to centralise the processing needs of all regional public administration workstations.

These investments have led to cost reductions, greater efficiency in resource management and better protection against the threats facing our information systems.

The risks and threats to our cybersecurity are real.

By mid-October, the Regional Public Administration Security Operations Centre had prevented more than 26,000 incidents, including nearly 360 critical incidents and almost 3,000 intrusion attempts.

We have created and operate the Azores Cybersecurity Competence Centre, a national RRP project that is part of the national C-Network, to help us fight external threats.

This centre has already managed to work with about 150 entities, including the 19 Azorean municipalities, 39 regional public education units, all public health units and hospitals, as well as other local and regional public administration bodies and private sector companies.

This is the basis of government action: training and empowering, and then taking action to converge.

We have also designed a whole new ecosystem and a new architecture for cross-cutting information systems – LINKA – which will connect regional public administrations, and connect regional public administration as a whole with citizens and businesses.

As part of the Digital Transition project, we intend to continue developing Administrative Modernisation Incentive Systems, as well as leveraging various digital support platforms.

The Digital Transition will only be useful and effective if we all manage to seize its potential.

But all this effort requires one thing: connectivity!

The Azores are on the verge of being connected between themselves, and to the world like never before.

Thanks to investment from an external entity, two international submarine cables will be connected to the Azores, and we have managed to have our recommendations included in the final report of the CAM Ring inter-island working group.

This is the type of connectivity we want for the Azores: fast, efficient and redundant.

But while it is important to talk about digital connectivity, it is no less important to talk about air connectivity.

Lajes Airport is more than just a physical infrastructure; it is one of the gateways to a region and a local infrastructure for the Azores, the Azoreans and the Azorean communities.

For this reason, we are completing the airport terminal expansion and modernisation project, so that we can offer better conditions and comfort to the growing number of users of this infrastructure.

In 2025, we reached one million passengers for the first time, and we are working to ensure that this figure continues to grow.

We have implemented the Incentive Programme for Attracting New Air Routes, which introduces conditions identical to those of other regional airports to promote new air links.

We must not forget that the Azores are in a unique geostrategic position, and we must know how to seize it, as it provides us with opportunities!

As such, the Regional Government, through the Vice-Presidency, has heavily invested in European Affairs and External Cooperation.

To defend and demand what is rightfully ours, we need to be present and proactive.

Over the past year, the Azores have played an important role in the Commission of Peripheral Maritime Regions, where we hold one of the Vice-Presidencies.

From the outset, we have been present in the discussion forums on the next Multiannual Financial Framework, which could have a significant impact on European fund transfers to our Region and how they are managed.

We are, and will continue to be, against centralism, and we cannot accept that the European Union promotes and implements this strategy of nationalising funds.

However, if we want to be heard and for our specificities to be taken into consideration, we must be present!

Not on a whim, but out of obligation!

The Azores are where they should be, forging new paths and at the forefront of new developments.

Only in this way will we be able to promote and grow our Region.

Boosting and growing the domestic economy is important, but we can only generate more wealth if we manage to attract investment.

And it was precisely with this in mind that we showcased ourselves and were present at Expo Osaka 2025.

For the first time, and after direct negotiations with AICEP, we were granted four days exclusively for the Azores at the world's largest trade fair.

The name of the Azores was on the world stage and was joyfully celebrated in Japan!

We also continued our commitment to WebSummit, which this year saw the participation of more than 20 Azorean companies operating in a wide range of sectors.

At this event, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding with STARTUP Portugal to better promote the growth of emerging companies in the Region.

This is a hallmark of this Government: we exist to serve and take action for the benefit of our fellow citizens and our companies, as we are not just words, we are deeds!

And these deeds are taking shape in all areas, so that the Azores can grow and prosper.

A Region that wants to be prosperous must invest in science, innovation and development.

We continue to invest in the ongoing training of the Azoreans.

We currently support over 50 doctoral students, either through the programme for funding doctoral grants in academic and non-academic settings, or through the programme for funding doctoral tuition fees.

And we continue to launch these programmes every year, ensuring stability and predictability.

But this is not all. We continue to consider the University of the Azores a pillar of our region, and for this reason, we remain committed to directly funding the University with €950,000.

We are also creating a regional tenure programme, a decisive step towards stabilising scientific careers and retaining talent—our talent!

And we are not stopping there!

As I said at the beginning, we must constantly adjust our activities and actions, and science needs this readjustment.

As such, we are in the final stages of reviewing Pro-Ciência, as well as the Azores Scientific and Technological System.

We want to open up science support systems to businesses as well, so that the link between academia and the business community becomes stronger, enhancing knowledge transfer.

We have successfully launched a general measure for co-financing projects, thus ending the culture of handouts and valuing those who work and want to work.

Our solid commitment to science has allowed us to raise our level of innovation.

And it is not the Regional Government of the Azores that says so.

It is the European Union.

According to the Regional Innovation Scoreboard, we have gone from being a Region with an Emerging Innovation level (with a score of 63.2) in 2020 to Emerging+ in 2025 with a score of 70.0.

And we will continue to grow, both by strengthening our Science and Technology Parks, which are increasingly well-equipped and capable, and by continuing to fund the University's Research Units and investing in Regional Science Centres.

We will continue to invest in our participation in European projects.

With these projects, we will promote the participation of our human resources in European consortia that have cutting-edge knowledge in key areas, which we want to see flourish in the Azores.

Admitting that we do not know everything is the basis for learning more!

The Plan and Budget that I present here for 2026 is realistic, tailored to the needs of the areas for which I am responsible.
What Members may consider to be a cut is nothing more than good management of public funds, both through the excellent implementation of funds this year and the reallocation of funds in certain areas.

This is a coherent, informed and consistent budget.

A budget that will enable the Azores to progress in their efforts to generate knowledge.

Moving forward in science.

Moving forward in innovation.

Moving forward in the digital transition.

Moving forward in defending the status of the outermost regions.

In short, moving forward side by side with the Azoreans!