The publication of the National Shipbuilding Policy 2025-2040 marks a strategic milestone for Chile, not only because it strengthens our defense capabilities and maritime sovereignty, but because it represents an exceptional opportunity to drive the country’s scientific, technological and industrial development. Although it stems from a political and strategic decision linked to defense, at its core it is really a major industrial policy, the kind that can generate cross-cutting impacts when it manages to connect productive sectors with capabilities in research, innovation and human capital development. The new naval policy has that potential.
For decades, Chile has been a country that looks at itself from the land, despite being a maritime nation. Today, with thousands of kilometers of coastline and a vast exclusive economic zone in the Pacific, its gaze is turning toward the sea, not only as a source of resources, but also as a setting for scientific progress, technological innovation and the creation of new industrial capabilities. The shipbuilding industry -as happened in countries such as South Korea and Canada- can become the turning point our economy needs to move from dependence on raw materials toward a knowledge-based economy.
The Continuous National Shipbuilding Plan (PNCCN), the backbone of this policy, is not just a defense planning tool. It is a true vector of development that mobilizes capabilities across multiple dimensions: training advanced human capital, developing new knowledge and technologies, creating science- and technology-based ventures, increasing productive sophistication and opening up to global value chains. It is a policy that fosters an industrial and scientific ecosystem with a long-term vision.
This kind of transformation requires the active involvement of universities and research centers. The policy recognizes that technological progress in shipbuilding is impossible without strengthening the country’s scientific capabilities. The design of complex vessels, the development of new materials, smart navigation systems and eco-efficient solutions all demand advanced research and effective technology transfer. Universities play an irreplaceable role as engines of knowledge, generators of talent and drivers of innovation alongside industry and the State.
This policy also opens an unprecedented space to strengthen technology transfer in the country. Unlike other sectors, where the disconnect between science and business remains a persistent barrier, shipbuilding offers a clear, concrete and permanent demand for advanced technological solutions. That clarity of demand makes it possible to build effective transfer mechanisms from knowledge-generating institutions to industry, creating a virtuous circle of innovation and competitiveness. Moreover, by bringing together public, private and academic actors, this policy faithfully embodies the triple helix model, widely recognized for its effectiveness in technological development processes.
The challenge now is to implement this policy with ambition, cross-sector coordination and a national vision. It is paradoxical -and worrying- that a policy with so much scientific and technological potential assigns no clear role to the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation or to the National Research and Development Agency (ANID). Both institutions should be at the center of this effort, not as mere spectators, but as key parts of the national machinery for development. If we truly want this policy to contribute to the structural change Chile needs, science and technology cannot be marginal players.
The National Shipbuilding Policy is concrete proof of how defense, when combined with strategic vision and well-designed public policy, can be a catalyst for a country’s scientific, technological and industrial development. Whether this effort translates into innovation, sophisticated entrepreneurship, quality jobs and new capabilities depends on our ability to seize this unique opportunity.
Javier Ramírez Ramos
Executive Director, Know Hub Chile
Read the original column at https://opinion.cooperativa.cl/opinion/ciencia-y-tecnologia/construccion-naval-una-nueva-carta-de-navegacion-para-el-desarrollo/2025-08-11/064127.html
