Future tasks for edication and research policy in the Federal Republic of Germany.

Resumen

First, let me thank you for the kind invitation to address you today in my capacity as chairman of the German/Argentine Commission for Scientific and Technical Cooperation. Eighteen months have passed since my last visit to Argentina. I am happy to be here again in this large and beautiful country. In 1994, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of German-Argentine cooperation on research and technology. At that time, the German Research Minister came to Buenos Aires in order to inaugurate -together with the President of Argentina- a seminar on technology transfer.

In the meantime, several important changes in education and research policy have taken place in Germany following the elections in the fall 1994. The new legislative period began with the merger of education, science, research and technology by amalgamating two separate ministries to form one -known in the abbreviation as BMBF. German journalists call it "Ministry for the Future". This term characterizes the growing awareness of the German public that education, science, research and technology are considered as a whole as regards Germany's future as a site attractive to industry and as a prerequisite for competitiveness and prosperity in the 21st century.