EU Funds contributed €662 million to Malta’s GDP during 2014-2020, reports MBB

According to a recent Malta Business Bureau report, EU funds contributed €662 million to Malta’s GDP in the seven-year period from 2014 to 2020.

Furthermore, EU funds are estimated by the organisation to have contributed 1,920 new jobs to the nation in the period.

The report, titled, ‘Improving Access to EU Funds by Private Enterprise in the Programming Period 2021-2027’ was commissioned by the MBB to identify the “impact of EU funds on the Maltese economy and the opportunities and challenges that businesses face when applying for EU funds”.

It “found that while businesses need further facilitation to apply for EU funds, most of the businesses that do apply manage to obtain funds.”

Featuring a survey with responses from over 100 businesses that have either already applied for EU funding, or are considering doing so, the report found that 76 per cent of responding companies that applied for funding, either directly to Brussels-managed programmes or to locally-administered structural funds, managed to obtain it. 

However, it identified more should be done to facilitate business access to EU funds, including by raising further awareness and simplifying procedures to reduce the administrative burden on potential applicants.

The MBB also put forward several recommendations seeking to improve business access to EU funds. 

These recommendations include, amongst others, the simplification of certain specific procedures, the provision of support to companies that are required to seek international partners to fulfil eligibility criteria, and the increasing of awareness of calls for applications. 

MBB CEO Joe Tanti commented, “the subject of EU funds and the opportunity they present to businesses is close to our heart and represents one of the MBB’s core missions”.

In the future, the MBB will be increasing its efforts “to support businesses in tapping directing funding in Brussels, by welcoming concept notes and helping them identify the correct funding stream for their project ideas. This service will be offered through the Enterprise Europe Network – Malta,” he explained.

The full publication by the MBB can found here.

The Malta Business Bureau is the EU-business advisory office of The Malta Chamber and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association.