Engineer, Dr. Santos Gracia, President of the Iberoamerican University Foundation (FUNIBER), attends the lunch offered in honor of the Brazilian President by the Spanish monarchs at the Royal Palace.
The recent official visit to Spain of the President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the First Lady, Rosángela Lula da Silva, was centered on a lunch organized in their honor at the Royal Palace in Madrid by the King and Queen of Spain, Felipe VI and Mrs. Letizia.
Santos Gracia Villar was invited to the event in his capacity as President of FUNIBER, a higher education institution of Spanish origin with a significant presence in Brazil, as well as in more than thirty countries, especially in Portuguese and Spanish-speaking countries.
During the event, Dr. Gracia spoke with President Lula and his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vierira. The participants, thus, agreed on the need to deepen “the strong human ties” generated by “our common Iberian heritage”, in the words of Lula da Silva; as well as the importance of promoting cooperation initiatives on the African continent.
In this sense, the president of FUNIBER has explained the relevance of the Universidade Internacional do Cuanza (International University of Cuanza)(UNIC), promoted by FUNIBER and the Universidad Europea del Atlántico (European University of the Atlantic) (UNEATLANTICO) in Cuito, central Angola, a country with important cultural ties with Brazil.
New recognition by the King of Spain for FUNIBER’s global efforts
With the invitation to participate in Lula da Silva’s reception, the Royal Household of Spain has once again recognized the Foundation’s work around the world. Similarly, last February, the Spanish monarchs, who were on a state visit to Angola, attended a presentation at the Economic Bank of Luanda for a presentation of UNIC and inaugurated an exhibition of two collections by Joan Miró, belonging to the Cultural Work of FUNIBER and UNEATLANTICO. On the other hand, last July, Santos Gracia himself was awarded the prestigious Officer’s Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic, instituted by the Spanish Crown in 1815.
With these distinctions, the Kingdom of Spain recognizes FUNIBER’s efforts, especially in the dissemina
tion and knowledge of the Spanish language, as well as its work for the mutual intercomprehension of the 900 million speakers of Spanish and Portuguese. Additionally, it is also worth noting its Cultural Work, which disinterestedly disseminates Spanish artistic manifestations in numerous countries, as well as the Foundation’s social commitment and its efforts to promote access to undergraduate and postgraduate education for the most underprivileged sectors, through an extensive scholarship program.