Malta’s per capita stock of foreign direct investment is the sixth highest in Europe and the country is taking its Lisbon commitments extremely seriously, said Malta’s Permanent Representative to the European Union Richard Cachia Caruana in Brussels.
Mr Cachia Caruana was addressing a seminar hosted by Malta’s Permanent Representation to the European Union together with the Malta Business Bureau to mark the first two years of Malta’s membership of the EU.
Two years down the line, the Maltese people are still grasping the vast opportunities of EU membership, said Mr Cachia Caruana. “This learning process will undoubtedly continue for a few more years.”
The Maltese economy has experienced a gradual recovery, he added.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased by 2.4 per cent in 2005 and a 3.1 per cent increase has already been registered in the first quarter of 2006.
Foreign direct investment is essential for the generation of more employment, to raise productivity and transfer skills and technology, he added.
Malta is focusing on five strategic themes: sustainability of public finances, competitiveness, employment, education and training, and environmental sustainability.
“The Maltese government’s efforts to correct the existing imbalances in its deficit are showing results, and the fiscal turnaround in the last three years has been quite remarkable,” he said.
This year, the ratio of the budget deficit to GDP is expected to fall below the three per cent benchmark from 10.2 per cent in 2003.
The debt ratio should also fall to around 71 per cent this year – a reduction of six per cent since 2004, he said.
Mr Cachia Caruana said that improvements had also been registered in the labour market. “Full-time employment in the private sector rose by 1.4 per cent in 2005, with private enterprise now employing over 90,000 people on a full-time basis.”
The EU is Malta’s largest trading partner and an ever-increasing percentage of Malta’s total exports and imports are sold to and bought from the 25 member states, he added.
“The decision to seek EU membership was a strategic one that foresaw the eventual positive benefits for the people of Malta as well as its business community,” said Mr Cachia Caruana.
The director of the Brussels-based Centre for European Studies Daniel Gros said that small states are faring very well, compared to larger member states.
Malta Standards Authority director Martin Seychell used Malta’s proactive role in the EU’s REACH negotiations to illustrate how small member states do participate in policy-making strategy at EU level.
The first session was concluded by The Financial Times’ Brussels Bureau chief George Parker, who challenged the view that the European Union’s decision-making process had been made more cumbersome by enlargement.