As part of its drive to bridge vocational education with the industry, for the second consecutive year the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology in collaboration with the Ministry for Education and Employment, organised its Annual National Conference.

The theme of this year's conference focused upon the reform of the apprenticeship scheme, which aims to bring apprenticeship training to the centre of the local industry, a reform rooted upon a collaborative practice between MCast and the local industry which provides apprentices with high-quality underpinning knowledge that is indispensable for the growth of the local industry and economy.

Since its inception in August, the apprenticeship reform has achieved a highly positive response from the industry with over 350 industrial entities offering over 600 apprenticeship posts in various fields such as Finance and Marketing, Electronics and Mechanical Engineering, Agriculture, Construction, Applied Science, Hairdressing & Beauty and Sports.

At the end of the conference held on 30 January at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, the Minister for Education and Employment, Evarist Bartolo presented certificates to sponsoring apprenticeship partners authorising them to use the MCast Apprenticeship Partner logo on their company's letterheads, websites and other official corporate material.