Cuban expert participates in UNESCO virtual meeting on open science

HAVANA, Cuba, May 12 (ACN) A Cuban scientific delegate, Dr. Ricardo Casate Fernandez, director of Science and Innovation of the Institute of Scientific and Technological Information (IDICT), is participating in an online meeting on Open Science—a project of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

According to the expert, the discussions revolve around the draft Recommendation on Open Science, already circulated to UNESCO Member States and intended to make specialized knowledge more transparent and beneficial.

He remarked that the transition to Open Science, driven by unprecedented advances in the digital world, allows scientific information, data and outputs to be more widely accessible and more reliably harnessed with the active engagement of all relevant stakeholders.
The project in question is being examined by technical and legal experts appointed by Member States.

In October 2020, the Directors General of UNESCO, the World Health Organization and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights called for open, inclusive and collaborative science, a joint appeal in line with Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

At its 40th session in November 2019, UNESCO's General Conference decided to elaborate a draft Recommendation on Open Science with suggestions to influence the development of national laws and practices.

In Cuba, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment is the agency responsible for directing, executing and controlling State and Government policy on science and technology. In turn, the Institute of Scientific and Technological Information (IDICT), which plays an important role in the development of services and the promotion of open access, organizes the International Congress of Information and coordinates the work of the Scientific, Technological and Innovation Observatory to monitor, analyze and assess the trends in relevant social issues based on the international dynamics of science, technology and innovation.