As part of my responsibilities I am very often invited to participate at the inauguration of EU-funded projects or to address beneficiaries of aid schemes financed under the various EU Funds including European Social Fund (ESF), European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), Cohesion Fund (CF) and others.   As the recipient of millions of Euros from the EU Malta, like other EU Member States, is obliged to hold these public activities so as to give an account and adequate exposure of how and where we are using the inward funds intended to finance projects in various sectors of the Maltese economy be it in education, environment, health, social services and transport just to mention a few.  As the Parliamentary Secretary responsible for EU Presidency 2017 and EU Funds, this task falls squarely upon my shoulders.

Last week, together with my Cabinet colleague the Minister for Education and Employment, I had the opportunity and the privilege to preside over the ceremony for the award of scholarships to hundreds of students of all ages who wish to further their studies at Masters level.  It was a great pleasure seeing the main hall of the Mediterranean Conference Centre packed with students, some of whom I remembered from my University days, who were selected to be awarded a scholarship.  Of great satisfaction was the fact that amongst some of the students there were grown-ups, including parents who are still raising a family who have decided to go back to their studies and catch up on where they had left off earlier in life. Perhaps not surprisingly, there were others who are grand-parents.  That in itself is a living proof that it is never too late in life to study.  This is after all what the concept of life-long learning is all about.

These bursaries were awarded under the Master It scholarship scheme part-financed by the European Union under the current Operational Programme II Cohesion Policy 2007 2013 entitled “Empowering people for more jobs and better quality of life”.  This scheme is a follow-up to a similar initiative by the name of STEPS.

In response to a public call issued last April, over 500 applications were received under the Master It scheme.  Following a transparent selection process, including the possibility of an appeal, over 300 students were selected to be awarded a scholarship to study for a Masters degree.  Compared to previous years the number of scholarships awarded last week was a record number basically, for two main reasons.  Firstly, the eligibility requirements were widened in order to allow more space for individuals to apply.  Secondly, and more importantly, in order to give the opportunity to a bigger number of students to participate, we increased the funds available for this scheme by another €700,000 over and above the €2 million already committed for this initiative. 

By supporting such a scheme, Government is putting its, or rather, people’s money where its mouth is. We believe very strongly in giving the opportunity to students of all ages to further their potential in various fields.  I say this with hand on heart, because this scheme is in fulfilment of our electoral promise to offer more opportunities to our students to further their studies at Master and Doctorate level, both locally and abroad, because Malta is in need of people with post-graduate qualifications in particular in new and unconventional fields of studies.  

The priority areas of study which have been indicated under this project sum up the industries and services that represent a mix of export-oriented and local-serving sectors, all of which support primary wealth creation in Malta.

 For example in the field of Higher-End Manufacturing, students will be following courses in renewable technologies and  product/equipment design; under Life Sciences  students will study hearing/visual impairment, profound and multiple disabilities and autism.  In the financial services sector areas of studies include business analytics and financial mathematics. In the field of Higher Quality Tourism  the course of studies will cover eco-tourism and  sports tourism.  Under Creative Industries students will study digital media radio/television film production while in the field of ICT they will study software development, microelectronics and forensic computing.  With respect to environmental issues, students will follow courses in alternative energy, climate change and green technology.

By supporting these post-graduate courses Government’s objective is to assist Maltese students to pursue further levels of academic research, improve the quality and relevance of our educational system, reduce  skills mismatches particularly within the priority economic sectors, support further research in science and technology and increase the capacity and level of research, innovation and development activity in Malta. 

I now look forward to a year or two from now to congratulate these students and celebrate with them their successful completion of their course of studies.

Dr  Ian Borg is the Parliamentary Secretary for EU Presidency 2017 and EU Funds