Month: May 2023

The Malta Business Bureau (MBB) and Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) organized a business conference titled ‘Navigating EU Direct Funds – Unlocking Financial Opportunities for Business.‘ This was organised through the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) project, which aims to assist SMEs in their journey towards sustainability, digitalisation, and resilience.

The primary objective of the conference was to enhance accessibility to direct EU funding programmes, such as Erasmus+, LIFE, COSME-SMP, Horizon 2020, and EIT, among others, for the national business community. The benefits of capitalising from the EEN service were also highlighted, as it facilitates the connection between finance experts and local businesses seeking funding opportunities.

Opening the event, MBB President Alison Mizzi said, “One thing that we have learnt throughout these years is that while businesses have many ideas for projects that may be eligible for EU funding, they find it complicated to identify the correct funding stream where to propose their ideas for funding. As such, the MBB, under the auspices of the Enterprise Europe Network, is here to advise businesses on identifying the correct funding stream for their project ideas and connect them with the relevant contact points to pursue their project application.”

On his part, MCST Chairman Dr. Tonio Portughese commented that “by prioritising innovation, digitalisation, and sustainability, we can drive economic growth, create new job opportunities, and enhance the quality of life for our citizens”.  Dr. Portughese reaffirmed MCST’s dedication to supporting R&I that drives the growth and prosperity of Malta’s scientific and technological landscape.

Parliamentary Secretary for EU Funds Hon. Dr. Chris Bonett stressed that, despite the challenges the country has faced in recent times, Malta has adapted, innovated, and grown due to the government working hand in hand with the private sector. The Parliamentary Secretary closed by emphasizing the importance of financial support for digitization and sustainability, for businesses to adapt these factors in their operations.

A presentation on direct funding programmes and their potential value for local businesses followed, led by MBB Senior Projects Executive Michele Agius and MCST National Contact Point for Horizon Europe Martin Vieira.

The event included two panel discussions with international and local funding experts, together with businesses with experience in tapping direct EU funds. These explored how such funding can support investments in sustainability, digitalisation, and R&I.  The first panel discussion on R&I opportunities featured insights from Mario Balzan, Founder of Ecostack Innovations, Oxana Mercieca, Eureka Eurostars National Project Coordinator at Malta Enterprise, Gonca Kara, EIT Climate KIC Senior Research Officer at MCAST, and Lili Kankaya, Senior Executive at MCST. Anthea Fabri, Director Framework Programme at MCST, facilitated the discussion. The second panel was moderated by MBB CEO Joe Tanti, focusing on the green and digital transformation and the role of EU funding. This included interventions from Joel Fernandes, Project & Policy Advisor at Eurochambres, Denise Fiorentino, CEO of Servizzi Ewropej Malta, and Morgan Parnis, CEO of Business Leaders Malta.

Addressing the conference, the President of the European Parliament Dr. Roberta Metsola encouraged Maltese businesses to embrace the change that the new realities are bringing. “They represent opportunity. A chance for renewal. For growth. Without change, we will stagnate: as an economy, as a country and as a Union. You who have invested all your energy and resources into creating something new and innovative, you who have sacrificed everything you have for your business, it is you that has every potential and all the stamina it takes to come out of this period stronger, perhaps more than ever before,” concluded President Metsola.

Businesses interested in finding out more about the EEN or other available funding schemes are encouraged to contact MBB’S EEN project coordinator, Michele Agius, at magius@mbb.org.mt.

The Malta Chamber Deputy President Nick Xuereb and CEO Dr Marthese Portelli were invited to participate during 2 panel discussions at the IFSP 2023 Annual Conference.

In his opening remarks, Xuereb noted that government subsidies, although critical, should be focused on the right areas such as directing funds towards investment into new energy projects.

With regards to manufacturing, Deputy President said that although manufacturing was key to Malta’s economy and was one of the most resilient during COVID, the industry’s contribution towards our GDP has declined throughout the past years. “Due to Malta’s geographical disadvantages and productivity challenges, we need to move up the value chain and push for the manufacturing sector to continuously invest in improvement and automation,” he said.

CEO Dr Marthese Portelli said that “excessive and superfluous bureaucracy always has a negative impact – this is true not only for the financial services industry but it is crosscutting across all sectors and industries. It impacts our competitiveness and attractiveness, apart from the frustration that it creates.”

“Admittedly our current bureaucratic system puts us at a disadvantage when compared with other countries – there are countries which are worse than us, but we should be looking at being better than those who are already better than us. Tackling excessive and superfluous bureaucracy is all about simplification, automation and integration,” she said.

During her intervention The Malta Chamber CEO highlighted that the strategy is in the right direction, however, in order to lead to its proper execution, we need to make sure that it:

•             has clear milestones and implementation dates

•             has set KPIs that must be reached

•             has proper service standards which must be observed

•             is supported by the proper infrastructure and support structures required

The Malta Chamber, together with PwC Malta (Gold Sponsors of The Malta Chamber) organised an event titled ‘Elevating your Customer Experience in the Digital Age’. The event aimed at raising awareness on the importance for organisations to re-imagine and re-think customer attraction and leverage digital innovation by moving to more data-driven, customer-centric omni-channel solutions which are tech-powered and human-led.

In his opening speech, The Malta Chamber President, Chris Vassallo Cesareo, highlighted that due to the dramatic increase in e-commerce activity, consumers are moving to digital channels in unprecedented numbers.

“It’s more important than ever for retailers to create a seamless experience across the physical and digital worlds as each channel plays a distinct and critical role in the customer journey. Consumers have clear ideas about where and how they want to shop and where they want to get services from so organisations must ensure that they provide a seamless experience,” he said.

Businesses should continue to improve their product and service quality so as to remain competitive and closer to the customers’ needs,” said President Vassallo Cesareo.

The European Commission has introduced a package of proposals to address the challenges faced by companies in the digital economy in relation to Value Added Tax (VAT). The package’s key actions aim to support the growth of businesses, particularly SMEs and cross-border operators, as well as to help Member States recover billions of euros annually in VAT revenues.

By implementing real-time digital reporting by companies through e-invoicing, the new system will equip Member States with crucial information to combat VAT fraud. Additionally, it will streamline administrative processes and lower compliance costs, fostering harmonization across EU countries and enabling the establishment of national digital reporting systems.

The EU Vat in the Digital Package also proposes the implementation of a single VAT registration system throughout the EU, expanding upon the existing ‘VAT One Stop Shop’ model for online shopping companies. This allows businesses selling to consumers in other Member States to register only once for VAT purposes for the entire EU, streamlining their obligations through a single online portal in a common language.

Moreover, the package introduces updated VAT rules for passenger transport and short-term accommodation platforms in the sharing economy. Under these rules, operators in these sectors will bear the responsibility of collecting and remitting VAT to tax authorities on behalf of their users. This uniform approach across all Member States will not only level the playing field between online and traditional short-term accommodation and transport services providers but also simplifies the VAT compliance process for operators across the EU.  

Local businesses are invited to participate in the Malta Business Bureau’s upcoming online webinar taking place on Tuesday 6th June, between 9.30am and 10.30am, that will provide more detailed information on these reforms. Anyone interested in joining this event can register by visiting the Malta Business Bureau website or reach out to the MBB policy team on infobrussels@mbb.org.mt.

The Malta Business Bureau is the EU business advisory business organisation for The Malta Chamber and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association. It is also a partner of the Enterprise Europe Network.

The President of The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry Chris Vassallo Cesareo welcomed the meeting with Leader of the Opposition Dr Bernard Grech and stated that The Malta Chamber looks forward to continued dialogue.

President Vassallo Cesareo spoke about the issue of inflation and said that, “ even though the government has done well to protect the economy by absorbing energy prices but the business community needs a clear way forward on when and how government intends to stop or taper off energy subsidies.”

During this meeting President Vassallo Cesareo also spoke about good governance especially in regards to public procurement and urged for a more level playing field. He also made reference to the urgent need for a justice reform.

President Vassallo Cesareo was accompanied by the Board of Management of The Malta Chamber together with the CEO Dr Marthese Portelli.