In the first session of the forum politicians together with experts from the business world and the academia focused on topics such as environmentally safe economic growth, innovation promotion with the help of scientific research and the education system, and opportunities provided by start-ups. "Only innovation can guarantee a sustainable economic development, but we need more publicity, openness and a dialog with the society. We have learnt a few lessons from certain energy projects. In order to introduce a favourable climate for the development of green economy, we cannot leave the society behind – we need their understanding and support," said the Prime Minister A. Butkevičius.
In the second session the most attention was dedicated to the competitiveness of education systems: digital learning, teacher training and labour market. The Head of the Lithuanian Government participated in the discussion about the necessity to develop skills for life in a digital environment. "In order to reach this goal it is imperative to support gifted and talented children, to increase financing for the natural, biomedical and technical sciences and to promote the culture of innovation. In Lithuania we are implementing National Integrated Programmes in the field of sciences. The first school based on these strategies was opened in Kaunas and received a lot of attention from parents," said A. Butkevičius.
On the eve of the forum the Prime Minister attended a dinner with the government leaders from the Nordic countries, the Baltic States and the United Kingdom, during which the topics of economic growth, employment, regional security and the situation in Ukraine were discussed.
This is the fourth meeting of the prime ministers of the Nordic and the Baltic countries and the United Kingdom. The first one was organized in London in 2011 by the initiative of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron.
