The Aga Khan University (AKU) is moving its relationships in Portugal from broad institutional engagement towards focused collaborations that can be taken forward and implemented. The aim is to connect Portuguese and European research with the health and development challenges facing communities across Asia and Africa.
To advance this, a delegation led by AKU President Sulaiman Shahabuddin visited Lisbon and Coimbra on September 24 and 25. The delegation included Trustee António Rendas, Vice Provost for Research Dr Salim Virani and Director of Global Engagement Ms. Fareena Feroze. Portugal is home to the Global Seat of the Ismaili Imamat.,This vist was in close coordination with the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat in Portugal (DII), which was represented by Diplomatic Representative Nazim Ahmad and Executive Director Rahim Kassam.
This engagement also builds on the Portuguese Research Initiative, an important AKDN collaboration with Portugal that has supported research capacity and connections between AKDN institutions and Portuguese academic and research partners. The third round of calls will provide further opportunities to build on this foundation.
In Coimbra, the visit built on AKU's newer partnership with the University of Coimbra, one of the world's oldest universities, and Unidade Local de Saúde de Coimbra (ULS Coimbra), the city's academic health system. The partnership was established earlier this year and this visit helped identify potential areas of collaboration. Areas identified and explored include gene and cell therapy, cancer, ageing and longevity, clinical research and planetary health. In a meeting with Mayor Ana Abrunhosa, together with Maria Manuel Leitão Marques, President of the Municipal Assembly, healthy ageing emerged as an interest shared by the city, its university and AKU.
At Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP), the focus was on how this already existing partnership can be strengthened. UCP has been a longstanding AKU partner in medical education, research and the study of Muslim Civilisations. Leaders discussed refreshing and broadening the relationship into areas such as research, AI and data science, the arts and sciences, health-professions education and academic mobility.
These conversations took place within a wider setting of government and health engagement in Lisbon. The delegation met Professor Helena Canhão, Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, to explore how AKU's strengths in health, AI and data science, and climate and environment could connect with Portuguese and European research. Talks with Professor Adalberto Campos Fernandes, Coordinator of the Strategic Health Pact of the Presidency of the Republic, focused on prevention and health systems. The delegation also met Pakistan's Ambassador to Portugal, H.E. Aisha Farooqui, to discuss strengthening education and health links between the two countries. At the Cascais International Health Forum, Dr Virani delivered a keynote on protecting cardiovascular health from before conception into adulthood.
AKU brings a strong research portfolio and academic programmes, including in maternal and child health, infectious and non-communicable diseases, climate and environmental research with a growing foot print in data sciences and artificial intelligence. Portuguese universities, in turn, have supported AKU's capacity development in research and other areas.
The way forward is a focused portfolio of collaborations, each with clear academic ownership and a pathway towards implementation. Institutional leadership will support them, and they will rest on direct connections between researchers, clinicians and educators at AKU and its Portuguese partners.
