The sheer number of education ministers seen over recent years makes one worry.

The sector is by far one of the most important on the island, yet right now we are seeing a constant change of the person at the top.

Prime Minister Robert Abela has appointed Clifton Grima as Minister of Education after the resignation of Justyne Caruana. The Gozo MP stepped down in the wake of damning report by Standards Commissioner George Hyzler, who found that Caruana abused her power when she gave her former footballer friend Daniel Bogdanovic a €15,000 contract. Bogdanovic had also been employed by the same ministry.

Let’s be clear, Justyne Caruana had to go, there was absolutely no way her position was tenable.

But the fact that Malta has had four education ministers in three years is a concern.

Caruana was appointed Education Minister in November 2020, effectively having been in the post for one year. Before her, Owen Bonnici was Minister for Education, having been appointed in

January 2020. Prior to that, Evarist Bartolo had been the minister for the sector under Joseph Muscat’s government. Now Clifton Grima has been appointed.

Changing the minister so many times cannot be good for a sector which needs a lot of planning.

The education of our children, the future of the country, needs to have some form of continuity in leadership. While changing a leader can bring with it new ideas and new ways forward – which is good and needed from time to time – doing this too often could cause problems. One minister might have different ideas, a different vision from another.

Malta’s education sector needs strong leadership and a focus on the future. With technology constantly changing and the shortage of expertise in so many sectors, we need someone to address this and plan ahead. The dropout rate is still of concern and needs to be tackled. The issues regarding Covid, exams and the format of schooling which could face changes is also something that the new minister must be prepared for.

PN MP Clyde Puli said in a press conference that there are 5,000 students without a laptop, hindering the technological advance in schools while creating a big problem during the pandemic. If this is the case, this needs to be tackled, and fast given the skyrocketing Covid case numbers.

The new minister does not have time to get up to speed and must hit the ground running. Grima will not be able to take things slow, he will need to dive in, sink or swim.

Covid is changing the world we are in, the forms of learning and even the types of jobs and the way work is carried out is changing. Youths need to be prepared for a world which might look different from what it was pre-Covid. There needs to be someone at the top with a plan, a long-term vision that could be carried out.

An election is coming in 2022, which could mean yet another change in education minister. One hopes that whoever is appointed minister for the sector then is there to stay.