Manuel Santiago was born in Aveiro on May 18, 1963. He has a degree in Business Management from Lusiada University and a postgraduate degree in European Studies from the Catholic University.

He is currently President & co-founder of the Music Series Festivals Association. The Music Series Festivals artistic project was set up with the main aim of supporting and promoting the national and international dissemination of young Portuguese musicians, mainly in the field of classical music.

Manuel Santiago is also president and founder of the organization “Portugal em Movimento”. The aim of PeM is to promote regular meetings to discuss, identify, share, promote and enhance the success stories of the Portuguese community based mainly in Switzerland.

Manuel Santiago has been a member of the Portuguese Diaspora Council since February 2024.