Return visitors to Malta often comment on how the country has changed since the last time they were here. They tend to notice the improvement in the quality of our public spaces, the distinct changes in our social attitudes and a general move towards a more cosmopolitan reality.

Since achieving independence in 1964, Malta has performed nothing short of an economic miracle, fashioning from very little a flexible, diversified and open economy in which the government has taken a regulatory role and the private sector is given ample space to contribute to economic growth.

The Malta Chamber sustains that Malta must position itself as a global hub for business and investment that will lead to increased prosperity. Our Islands have a long tradition of international business which dates back to the time of the Phoenicians. As one of the world's most open economies, today and in the coming years, 'outwards' has become the only direction in which businesses should look, as prosperity is propelled by international business.

The CHOGM Business Forum, and the Commonwealth as an organisation, can play an important and determinant role in this process, and the Malta Chamber is pleased to contribute directly to this forum.

The same unique characteristics that have contributed so much to Malta's economic success also tend to pose serious challenges in the pursuit of our vision. In attempts to venture beyond our national confines, operators are hampered by economies of scale restrictions that are further compounded by additional costs such as those involved in shipping raw material in and the finished product back out to the intended market. Operators on the mainland are spared from such disadvantages. Apart from such difficulties, which are directly related to production and logistics, economies of scale also come into play to increase the cost-base in an indirect manner.

The growth registered in our recent past has come principally through the penetration of markets in Europe and North Africa. However, for a variety of reasons these markets have become increasingly unstable. By 2050, none of the European member states are projected to be among the world's largest economies. Malta, therefore, needs to choose very carefully, as one poor decision can, of course, have a significant effect on us and our future economic performance.

This is where the Commonwealth comes in. As members of this great organisation, we do not need to seek new partnerships elsewhere. We must instead seek to make better use of a strong but latent organisation that we already have and this is the Commonwealth. In so doing, we need to work towards using this important network to assist and facilitate trade and investment exchanges amongst the 53 member countries. We must use our membership of the Commonwealth as a platform of evolving economic trends where business opportunities constantly arise and of which we need to make each other aware at a frequency that is equally constant. 

As the Malta Chamber, we will be taking the opportunity of the CHOGM Business Forum to call for the establishment of a Commonwealth Chamber of Commerce, which would bring together Chambers of Commerce and Business Federations from across the Commonwealth in a bid to facilitate business and investment collaboration. This pan-continental association would work on the same lines as similar organisations such as EUROCHAMBRES and ASCAME, which have successfully worked towards the improvement of businesses conditions across regions and facilitating access to new markets.

After all, the Commonwealth is - above all - a coming together of people who are willing and able to engage with one another to maximise the opportunities that arise and to develop close and lucrative economic ties.

The Malta Chamber believes that through the appropriate political, environmental and economic conditions we can successfully shape the present and future of island states and how their strengths and limited resources can be turned into opportunities and used to overcome the threats and uncertainties that may loom ahead of us.

The Commonwealth offers us the ideal platform on which to share our strengths, bring about collaboration and aspire to greater economic prosperity.

Anton Borg is President of the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry