Fourteen Gozitan students were recently presented with their respective certificates of achievement by Minister of Gozo Giovanna Debono to mark the successful completion of the two-year ESTS Hospitality Apprenticeship Programme offered by the Institute of Tourism Studies in Gozo in “Food Preparation and Production, and Food and Beverage Service”. The ceremony took place at the Ministry for Gozo in Victoria.

Full-time courses in the above subjects were offered by the Institute of Tourism Studies for the first time in Gozo in 1996 but were discontinued the following year. They were offered once again in October 1998 and have been held ever since.

Speaking during the presentation ceremony, Mrs Debono highlighted the need for more qualified workers to be engaged in the hospitality, catering and tourism industry. Minister Debono said the government is investing heavily in this sector not only through the provision of more academic courses but also through the construction of a new campus to accommodate the Institute for Tourism Studies in Qala.

This infrastructural project is being co-financed with the Structural Funds Programme for Malta 2004-2006 and involves an investment of €1.5 million. The new facility will provide the necessary infrastructure and amenities for quality training in tourism-related services in Gozo, allowing also for the offering of new courses that up to now are not available on the island. The new training centre, work on which is at an advanced stage, will include a restaurant and bar facilities, a fully equipped advanced training kitchen as well as an individual food preparation and cooking training laboratory, a reception foyer, a computer training laboratory, classrooms, a laundry room, a hostel with eight bedrooms together with the necessary housekeeping facilities.

In the last two years, 140 Gozitan students have successfully completed courses held by the Institute of Tourism Studies and the Employment and Training Corporation (Gozo) through funds obtained by the Ministry for Gozo under the European Social Fund. A number of the courses were held for the first time in Gozo.