spurred by its2004
accession to
theEuropeanUnion and subsequent
adoptionof theeuro,Maltahas emerged
as a reputable international business,
financial andmaritimehub.
“Over thepast 14months the
government hasworkedhard tobuild
a strong access networkof businesses
to relevant institutions and accessibility
towhoever is interested in relocating
hereor owns anoperationbased
here,” saysChrisCardona,minister
for theeconomy, investment and small
business. “Thenumber of investments,
bothFDI and local investments, is
without precedent in2013 andmore
than 132projects havebeen approved.
This translates into a total investment
ofmore than€166million and an
additional 2,500 jobswithin thenext
three years.
These come frombothhome and
overseas, andmany havebeen secured
with the assistanceofMaltaEnterprise,
thenational economicdevelopment
agency. Responsible for attracting
inwards investment to the country, the
organisation then supports industry in
everything fromestablishingprivate
equity funds toensuring thatMalta's
educational institutions are fostering the
skills requiredby its leading companies.
"The answer to attracting investment
does not liepurelywith incentives,"
says chairpersonDrMarioVella, whose
mainobjective is to increase theGDP
contributionofmanufacturing–both in
traditional industries andnew advanced
technologies– from 11% to20%. "We
need tobase it on real competitiveness
– control labour costs andpublic sector
costs, including theenergy tariffs, and
make sure there areenoughhuman
resourceswith the right qualifications."
The contributionof theprivate
sector alsoboostsMalta's appeal, with
companies such asCSBGroupon
hand tohelp foreign clientele–which
represent 95%of CSB's business– set
upoperations on the island.
In addition,Malta's position at the
gateway betweenEurope andNorth
Africahas longmade it an attractive
investment location for companies from
these regions– somethingVellahopes
to continue, while remaining awareof
wider opportunities. "Whateverwe
do, we try toget agoodmix in terms
of originof investment, destination
of exports and thebalancebetween
different sectors," he says. "Wewould
like tobroaden that for thenext 10 to20
years andwepredict that growthwill
have to come from theeast andother
areas such as LatinAmerica and sub-
SaharanAfrica."
MinisterCardona
“Ourcurrentagenda is to
create jobsanddiversify
theeconomy.Ourvision is
topositionMaltaamong
thebest inEurope”
Top:MinisterChrisCardona.Middle:
SmartCityMalta is thecentrepieceof the
country'semerginghigh-tech industry.
Bottom:DrMarioVella
POPULATION:
423,282
GDP PER CAPITA
€16,444
MAIN TRADING PARTNERS
ITALY, GERMANY AND UK
OFFICIAL LANGUAGES
MALTESE AND ENGLISH
A D V E R T I S I N G S U P P L EME N T
