Gozo, for many the destination for memorable stays with its unique product offer, is making a name of its own as it attracts new investment opportunities where companies and their workforce can strike the perfect work-life balance. Gozo is indeed brimming with business opportunities, and has been consistently one of the best performing eurozone economies in terms of economic growth and financial stability for the past five years. While Gozo is benefiting from the national expansion in tertiary services and tourism, it adopts a selective approach to investment attraction and business promotion focusing on higher value niches which provide the best strategic fit with its longer-term development goals and the vision of its business community.
Gozo is idyllic. With 7000 years of central Mediterranean history and culture, it has the oldest free-standing megalithic temples that are a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is pursuing an ecological development brand for tourism and for residential services activities, building on its natural and architectural assets, and its solid traditions in agriculture and marine crafts. Gozo is a place where beauty and tranquillity merge in an unspoilt and inspiring way. Its countryside, beautiful beaches and dropping cliff edges provide the ideal getaway for adventure lovers. Kayaking, climbing, and diving are some of the sports which can be practised during most of the year, thanks to the mild climate. Visitors to the island are fascinated by the friendliness of the locals and the typical local produce, such as the authentic freshly baked ftira or local wine, in one of the traditional pubs or bakeries scattered around the villages.
Gozo is innovative. It offers tourism activities that are complementary to, yet distinct from those of the mainland, focusing on longer stay tourists who seek immersive cultural experiences based on its history, Mediterranean artistic confluences and the natural environment, combined with high quality boutique accommodation. The recent restoration of the historic Cittadella is a shining example of sustainable cultural regeneration.
Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry have teamed up with the Government of Malta to establish a medical school in Gozo. Infrastructural work has started in earnest to accommodate the new campus. This should provide state-of-the-art teaching facilities, just a short walk away from the centre of Gozo's main town of Victoria. Steward Healthcare, the largest hospital operator in the United States, will be responsible for developing a medical hub at the Gozo Hospital, offering excellent medical services to the local community and to visitors.
IT companies such as Thynk software, with its innovations centre, and RS2 software, are success stories of IT companies setting up shop in Gozo. Gozo's tranquillity offers the ideal backdrop to work and relax, while connecting efficiently with the rest of the world.
Gozo is connected. It is an hour away from Malta International Airport, which welcomes over five million passengers every year and is connected to over 100 global destinations across three continents. Physical connectivity is being further enhanced through investments in maritime, digital and road infrastructures. Gozo is well-resourced. Its human capital is intrinsically ambitious to succeed and achieves higher than average in educational attainment, when compared to national performance. Work ethics are ingrained in traditional values, yet looking forward to embrace new technologies and modern business. Gozo is benefiting from private and public investment, including EU funds, which is creating a vibrant business eco-system. Investment in the region also benefits from more favourable business promotion incentives offered by the Government of Malta, which help to limit the costs of doing business from the island. The delivery of public services in Gozo and the support to business operating there will, over the next few months, receive a fresh boost with the setting up of a specific public entity focusing on regional development.
Gozo looks forward to the future with optimism, eager to forge new partnerships with business that is capable of growing on the island in a manner that is consistent with its long-term vision of a higher value added and idyllic destination focus on economic and environmental sustainability.
It is with pleasure that the Minister for Gozo welcomes the Gozo Expo 2019 and the Gozo Business Awards to the island-region. Gozitans are renowned for their great sense of entrepreneurship, their resilience and determination to succeed.
Skills and experience, determination and ambition in many fields of economic activity in Gozo have been the healthy components of an admirable economic expansion for the island's economy in general. From a situation where Gozo depended for long decades on the country's economic state, last year it reached gross value-added levels, placing Gozo as a contributor of 4.2 per cent to the national economy in recent years.
These economic and financial safeguards are coupled with a long list of strong investment in capital projects, accompanied by a flourishing activity that promotes Gozo as a distinct year-round destination that reached a record of six million passengers during 2018. The increasing success of the hospitality sector provides the necessary encouragement - for both the Ministry and the private sector - to strive further in the coming months and years.
The Ministry encourages and recommends Maltese and particularly Gozitan businesses to dedicate their efforts to contribute substantially to the quality of the Gozo EXPO by participating in the interchange, thus enhancing the professionalism of their organisation. The Ministry believes this high-profile event can be one of the most productive ever for Gozo and private/SME participation will lead to important improvements that will have a positive impact on the Gozitan economy, as companies accrue the benefits of improvement.
Refining the Gozo product and promoting it internationally are key factors for sustaining the success achieved so far. The Gozo EXPO 2019, as well as the Gozo Business Awards should be yet another effective platform towards that end and hopefully will play a key role in the success of this trade fair and welcomes any opportunities to contribute to this process.
The Ministry for Gozo offers information and support to interested businesses, as well as through business support schemes. https://mgoz.gov.mt/en/Pages/Home.aspx
For further information on exhibition packages and nomination for the GBA, please contact Margaret Brincat on 9940 6743 or send an email to: [email protected]