Debate with Nuno Palma fills auditorium at Católica Porto Business School

Last week, Católica Porto Business School welcomed Nuno Palma, Professor of Economics at the University of Manchester, to present and debate his book "As Causas do Atraso Português" (The Causes of Portuguese Backwardness). The event, part of the School's academic debate and publicity initiatives, was well attended by the educational community and the general public.  

The session was opened by the School's associate dean for faculty, Ana Lourenço, and had as participants in the debate the professors Rodrigo Queiroz e Melo (Faculty of Human Sciences of the Universidade Católica Portuguesa) and Miguel Sottomayor (Católica Porto Business School).  

At the start of the session, Nuno Palma presented the book's framework, outlining a historical and economic portrait of Portuguese development from the colonial empire in the 17th century to the 20th century. According to the author, "Portugal wasn't lagging behind Europe in the 18th century, but it fell behind in the 19th century". He also argued that "the Empire never enriched the country as a whole - it had some weight for the state, but never for the Portuguese economy as a whole". The analysis covered topics such as culture, religion, the role of the Marquis of Pombal, liberal movements, the First Republic and the Estado Novo. The book seeks to answer the central question: how can a country considered rich in the world context remain among the least developed in Europe?  

The debate moderated by Miguel Sottomayor followed this intervention, featuring Rodrigo Queiroz e Melo and Nuno Palma. The discussion largely centred on education as one of the main structural factors of backwardness. Rodrigo Queiroz e Melo emphasised the discrepancy between investment in the teaching profession and the results obtained in educating the population: "In ten years we've doubled the number of teachers, but we haven't doubled the number of graduates, nor have we increased by 10 or 15 per cent."  

He also warned of the low literacy and numeracy levels of the most qualified generation ever, between the ages of 18 and 35, emphasising the lack of incentives in the education system for real improvement: "The system is still not producing people comparable with the rest of the world."  

The session ended with a question-and-answer session allowing direct dialogue between the participants and the speakers.