Young Enterprise Malta is renowned for its organising techniques and the high level of activities hosted here.
The last European event held in Malta was in 2000, when Malta hosted the Young Enterprise European Trade Fair at the site of the old opera house in Valletta.
However this year’s event will be taking place on a much bigger scale in view of the merger of Junior Achievement Europe and Young Enterprise Europe.
Teams from 21 countries will be competing for the coveted award. Malta’s representatives at this final competition will be known this coming Wednesday, when the winner of the HSBC Young Enterprise Company of the Year is announced.
“The next few days are going to be extremely hectic – and exciting – for everyone who is involved with Young Enterprise.
“On Wednesday evening, the ten teams taking part in this year’s HSBC Young Enterprise Programme will be giving their final presentations and the winner will then move on to compete against the best Young Enterprise companies from around Europe. Organising these two important events has been a great challenge but we are confident that Young Enterprise will make Malta proud with the best European Finals ever held,” said Young Enterprise Malta chief executive officer Mark Farrugia.
The 10 teams competing for the HSBC Young Enterprise Company of the Year Award are: Solutions, Links, Sole-Mates, Bright Minds, Dynamix, Pl@n:It, Yned, Dis ‘N Dat, Milestones and Whimsical.
Apart from the Company of the Year Award, a further nine awards will also be presented during the national finals.
These awards will be presented for various specific aspects involved in running a Young Enterprise Company such as accounting, marketing, quality systems and the best use of technology.
The competing countries for Junior Achievement – Young Enterprise European Company of the Year competition are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and, obviously, Malta.
Team members representing the winning YE companies in each of these countries will begin arriving in Malta on Thursday.
“This has been a very hectic year for Young Enterprise Malta. Organising the European Finals is no easy task. This is a very important week both for Young Enterprise and for Malta, as we prepare to welcome teams from across Europe.
“Thanks to the support we have received from a number of companies, particularly PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Intercomp, I am sure that the entire event will be a great success,” said YEM chairman Josef Camilleri.
Malta has a very proud record in the JA – YE European Company of the Year Competition, having won the competition on a total of four different occasions.
The last time that this competition was held in Malta was in 1998 when the Maltese company, Omicron, also won the prestigious European award.
Education Minister Louis Galea said Young Enterprise has played an important role in the education of our post-secondary students for the last 16 years.
“It is vitally important that a holistic education also includes exposure to the practical realities of life in the workplace.
“Young Enterprise offers students a fantastic opportunity to help themselves to prepare for their post academic life.
“The Government has always firmly believed in the benefits Young Enterprise provides not just to individual students but, in the longer term, to Malta’s economic well-being.
“I am sure that this coming Saturday, the winners of the HSBC Young Enterprise Company of the Year Award will once gain make Malta proud when they compete against teams from across Europe,” he said.