Malta is well on track to implement its National Reform Programme and it is among the “better” countries in respect of its approach, Gert-Jan Koopman told The Malta Independent yesterday.

Mr Koopman is the Director of Industrial Policy and Economic Reforms

in the European Commission’s Enterprise and Industrial Directorate General.

He is in Malta for the second technical meeting on the National Reform Programme and to evaluate its implementation which, he said, is advancing very well.

Mr Koopman arrived in Malta on Sunday and held an information meeting with Competitiveness and Communication Minister Censu Galea on the implementation of the reform programme. Yesterday, he held a long meeting with representatives of nearly all ministries in order to properly assess the implementation of the NRP.

Mr Koopman said Malta appeared to be well on-track and he was satisfied with the achievements so far. He said it was very positive that there was a cabinet committee that was responsible for the implementation of this plan.

“Malta had a difficult couple of years, especially with regard to its deficit, but it is now laying the foundations for the future. We would like to understand more how Malta will be using structural funds to implement this National Reform Programme. It costs around EURO 100 million to implement it,” he said.

Mr Koopman said that increasing the number of women in trade was one of Malta’s greatest challenges, because this could only happen if there were a change in culture and mentality. Malta’s targets in this regard are reasonable, he said, but the country had to work hard to reach them.

Malta’s targets for innovation and research and development were reasonable, said Mr Koopman, and could be achieved. He said the country had started at a low point in this field, so any change is going to be seen as a good improvement. “We are very keen to see and evaluate Malta’s policies in this respect,” he said.

He said the SmartCity@Malta investment that the government had brought to Malta was a step in the right direction in order to achieve the set targets in innovation and research and development.

When asked what was Malta’s greatest challenge, Mr Koopman said the government had to do all it could to keep the financial deficit under the three per cent mark. He said that in the country’s next budget, the government will be expected to come up with measures to keep the financial deficit under control.

Mr Koopman said a progress report is due in October and by December the European Commission will have given its opinion on the country’s progress.