Dear Sarah Jane Maxted, other MIT faculty members and members of the national teams that today are graduating from the REAP Program.

I am honored to be here with you at the Graduation Ceremony and Reception for the fourth MIT REAP Program. The six teams from Nova Scotia; Lima Peru; Madrid Spain; Lagos Nigeria; Dubai and Iceland come from very different economies and cultural backgrounds - but they all have one thing in common which unifies them here at MIT – that is to be concerned about creating the best future and social equality for their fellow citizens.

It has been a true pleasure for me to have the opportunity to follow the development of the policy paper with the six actions that our Icelandic team has defined as critical for the acceleration of the Icelandic innovation ecosystem. This work is of particular importance now as my ministry is about to embark on the challenging endeavor of writing a holistic Innovation Policy for the Government of Iceland. This is by no means an easy undertaking and will embrace involvement from many stakeholders such as all political parties represented in Parliament, representatives from corporates, both small and medium size innovation driven enterprises as well as growth companies that are eagerly competing on the international markets.

Our Education Policy will also be revised, and full synchronization is to be secured between these two important policies. This is vital for several reasons for example as the supply of university graduates is not coherent with the demand form the business community and corporate needs. We as many other small economies are lacking a critical mass of highly qualified people in science and engineering. This shortage of proper talent is a matter of concern in the rapidly changing world today. The fourth Industrial Revolution - as it is commonly referred to - is a paradigm shift in our understanding of the evolution of economic- and social development.

It is important to note that this changing environment is not only about economic growth and competitiveness. It is also about bridging the digital divide and recognizing the importance of social inclusion, gender equality, ethnicity and age. Social progress must not be overlooked. We must leverage the capacity of society to meet the basic human needs of the citizens and allow them to enhance and sustain the quality of life and create the conditions for all individuals to reach their full potential.

It is my firm believe that all societies can improve their economic, social and political structures and performance. Regardless of how small or irrelevant one may seem to be - everyone can in fact score important goals on the international arenas.

Ladies and gentlemen: With sincere respect for the MIT-Reap Program and the six national teams that are now graduating – I would like to propose a toast to you all - and wish that the important task that you have now completed will bring your citizens a prosperous future and wellbeing.

To you all !

Thank you !