INTERVIEW
Issue 78
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September 28, 2017
FRANK V. FARRUGIA, PRESIDENT, MALTA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Distributed with Times of Malta
TONY ZAHRA, PRESIDENT, MHRA
PAUL ABELA, PRESIDENT, GRTU
Finance Minister Edward Scicluna shares his thoughts on whether the economy is overheating, Malta’s infrastructural issues, and addressing long-term issues ahead of Budget 2018. see page 8 >
CASE STUDY Meet the gaming company that’s helping to clean up Malta’s seas and save the environment. see pages 12, 13 >
Constituted bodies express grave concern on lack of human resources ahead of Budget Marie-Claire Grima Concerns about human resource shortages, infrastructural deficiencies and the consolidation of Malta’s current financial and economic prosperity into long-term success, as well as worries that the ‘playing field’ of business is tilted towards foreigners and unscrupulous operators, are weighing heavily on the minds of
Malta’s business and employer bodies as the Budget draws closer. “Once again the Malta Chamber is focusing its priorities on two over-arching goals which in the eyes of the Chamber, determine the sustainability of the economy’s growth,” said Frank V. Farrugia, President of the Malta Chamber of Commerce. “We are calling on government to exploit the current positive standing of public fi-
nances to rectify structural issues that threaten long-term fiscal sustainability, whilst encouraging government to further enhance the factors that contribute to Malta’s competitiveness with emphasis on overcoming the severe labour shortages and modernising ageing infrastructure through sustainable long-term planning. “Certainly the biggest challenge for our businesses will be the re-
cruitment of human resources. The state of ‘full-employment’ has led Malta’s private sector to experience large difficulties to fill vacancies that arise in order to meet the demand for goods and services. We envisage that this labour gap, which exists both in terms of quantity and quality, is expected to persist well into 2018. The soContinued on page 3
STOCK MARKET REVIEW Highlighting the main principles of successful investing in order to generate adequate returns. see pages 20, 21 >
NEWS Could Government’s pro-employee pledges and policies have long-ranging negative effects on the economy? See page 25 >