The way forward is for the government to serve as broker of opportunities to be offered to the private sector, said Prime Minister Joseph Muscat in an address to the business community this afternoon.

Dr Muscat was speaking during an activity organised by the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry.

The ideal is that Malta should make it to the shortlist of any investor in Europe and elsewhere however we must still push ourselves to be considered seriously. Once the island is considered, we have a “killer product” and are excellently positioned geographically, in terms of human resources and in technical and legislative agility.

“Once the structures are right, we can really deliver,” Dr Muscat noted.

He highlighted that growth and austerity are on the same coin and believes that no austerity structure will be successful without growth.

Noting that Malta cannot underestimate the European market, he said we must look at the way forward and position ourselves well to attract business from China, Russia, Gulf countries and all emerging economies.

The focus over the next few months is the setting up of the citizenship and visa agency which will be on the same level of the Malta Financial Services Authority. There is a huge demand and market in the field and Malta will invest in it.

Dr Muscat added the business community is thriving but it needs a sense of intent and purpose.  Some consortia have shortcomings and there is room for different partners to work together and come forward with a more holistic product, he pointed out.

He highlighted that no one speaks on the feasibility of cutting energy tariffs, any longer. This is because the government has a clear, feasible plan and there is very good private sector interest in energy which is opening a totally new market.

“Give us the right environment for business to prosper and we will do the rest,” said Chamber of Commerce president David Curmi.

He spoke of the business community’s eagerness to dialogue noting that the economic climate remains bleak and uninspiring. Malta is among the most open economies in Europe and meanwhile, the euro contracted for the sixth quarter.

Growth remains stagnant and he believes the real solution is combining European reforms with local ones.

The Chamber is of the opinion it is high time to tackle structural issues that create bottle necks in the economy. Long lasting sustainable goals are necessary, he said.

At a point when Malta is in the process of allocating EU funds for the next seven years, authorities must look at the private sector to help generate business with the help of EU funds.

The Chamber has formed a high profile think tank which will be drafting the vision for the next five years. Discussions will start soon and a document will be presented to the government by October.