“Quality across the board” is the X-factor that Malta requires to brand itself, former member of the House of Commons, Simon Coombs, said yesterday.

Presenting a set of seven proposals aimed at nurturing Malta’s growth potential needs through the smart use of the island’s capabilities, Mr Coombs insisted that all-round quality was the key to increasing the country’s competitiveness.

The policy document Smarten up – a smarter way for Malta was launched during a business breakfast yesterday morning by the foundation for national competitiveness, Competitive Malta.

Mr Coombs, who helps the foundation and was involved in the finalisation of the policy document, spelled out the real problems that were tarnishing Malta’s image.

He acknowledged that Malta had a lot of positives in its favour but the shortcomings were so glaring that they caused more harm than good. He said the first proposal, national branding, had to focus on Malta as a quality destination.

Competitive Malta is proposing that national branding should be devised by the government under the leadership of the Prime Minister and through the integration of those stakeholders that have a direct impact on the infrastructure of the country.

Mr Coombs said, however, that linking the branding to the Malta Tourism Authority “is short-term and lacking in a holistic vision for Malta as a destination that supports tourism as well as a place where businesses can be successful”.

The adoption of a social and economic pact is the second proposal and Mr Coombs insisted that there had to be successful social dialogue for the pact to become a reality.

“There has to be collaboration between the social partners as well as the will on the government’s part to get things going,” Mr Coombs said.

The third proposal focuses on cluster building in the manufacturing sector. Mr Coombs said the idea is to group together a mix of companies that enable each of them to benefit from the other’s sales, consumers and markets. An example of cluster building was given by William Wait from Toly Products, which has set up a number of highly successful cluster companies around it.

Competitive Malta is also proposing that the government should encourage differentiated foreign direct investment so as to create an improved stock back of research and development and innovation.

Mr Coombs said that two areas stood out in this regard: the medical sector and the services sector. He said that Malta could build upon its history and excellent standing in the medical sector to build a competitive advantage.

“We need to devise a strategy to enable Malta to become a centre of excellence in the medical sector and aim to attract FDI in relation to the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, to attract private patients to Malta as a medical service hub, to engage with other national health systems so as to channel overloads and to highlight Malta’s competence in medical conditions such as diabetes and asthma,” Mr Coombs explained.

The huge investment made by pharmaceutical companies was highlighted by Ivan Micallef from Novartis.

He insisted that setting up factories was just part of the investment and that pharmaceutical companies spent billions of dollars on drug trials and other services. Mr Micallef said the latter two areas had still not been tapped and great potential existed.

Mr Coombs said that another proposal would see the need to instil, at every level of education, a framework of quality and excellence, with a particular emphasis on customer care.

The urban environment and construction are two issues that are also addressed by Competitive Malta. They are proposing a concerted effort to improve Malta’s aesthetic and architectural characteristics, “so turning Malta into a high quality aesthetic experience for foreigners visiting Malta for leisure or business”.

The main issues that need to be addressed, Mr Coombs said, were haphazard construction activity in urban environments, design issues, environment issues such as noise and dust pollution, the number of derelict or unfinished developments and enforcement.

The final proposal calls for an overhaul of the current system of public transport.

Mr Coombs said the government should restructure the existing bus route network by reducing the emphasis on Valletta as a hub, increase the number of taxis so as to offer alternative transport, and assist in the introduction of alternative transport nodes such as improve water taxis and a cable car system in the inner harbour region.

The event was organised by the foundation in collaboration with The Malta Business Weekly and the Le Meridien Phoenicia Hotel.