Experts urge sustainable infrastructure planning to tackle Malta’s growth challenges

EY Malta, in collaboration with The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry and Times of Malta, organised the ‘Build and Share: Sustaining Malta’s Growth’ event aimed at discussing emerging trends, regulatory frameworks and innovative financing models that are essential for the successful delivery of infrastructure projects.

In his opening remarks, Chris Vassallo Cesareo, President of The Malta Chamber, said that, “sustainability must be at the heart of our vision, and that includes urban planning. Strategic urban planning balances land use and transportation to support sustainable economic growth while preserving natural, cultural, and historical heritage.”

Ronald Attard, Country Managing Partner at EY Malta noted that, “the private sector has a crucial role to play in financing our infrastructure needs. It is imperative that we employ diverse strategies to attract private investment, including innovative financing solutions and robust risk management practices.”

Mats Persson, Partner at EY UK and Former Special Advisor to the Prime Minister and Chief of Staff to the Chancellor of the Exchequer delivered the keynote speech. “There are five fundamental transitions set to influence capital investments over the next decade: the increasing cost of capital, energy transition, a new form of supply globalization, technology and ageing population. This will influence the design and funding of infrastructure projects, including in Malta,” he highlighted.

Another presentation was delivered by Lawrence Walsh, Head of EIB Group Office in Malta, in which he emphasised that, “the EIB has already funded a number of infrastructure projects in Malta, and can provide various options, including intermediated lending or guarantee products through local financial institutions.”

In a joint presentation delivered by Chris Meilak and Gilbert Guillaumier, Partners (Strategy & Transactions) at EY Malta, they stated that infrastructure is the backbone of any economy.

Mr Meilak added that, “it supports our daily lives, drives economic growth, and enhances our quality of life.  The effects of this economic and population growth are profound. We are seeing massive increases in demand and consumption across various sectors, which places significant pressure on our infrastructure.”

Mr Guillaumier said, “These challenges require our immediate attention. To address these challenges, we need to consider two key frameworks. Firstly, a Build Framework, where public and private players collaborate, and a Share Framework, which foster synergies and sharing among private entities that can lead to more efficient use of resources, and unlock economies of scale benefits.”

In a fireside chat between Marthese Portelli, The Malta Chamber CEO, and Steve Ellul, Infrastructure Malta CEO, the discussion revolved around infrastructure, commerce and the bottlenecks we must overcome.

Mr Ellul emphasised the need for adopting successful European infrastructure models when it comes to the sharing of subterranean infrastructure by multiple operators. He discussed leveraging AI for traffic management and on-site enforcement. He explained the importance of projects such as Vjal Kulħadd which will see the creation of 14 projects that will prioritise non-vehicular road usage. “Longer-term strategies include plans for parking near maritime hubs to encourage sea travel and reduce road congestion in urban centers,” he added.

Dr Portelli highlighted that improving Malta’s infrastructure will help address Malta’s low productivity and increase competitiveness. She acknowledged the country’s exponential GDP growth but explained that as a country “we failed to fully consider and plan for the downsides that such exponential growth brings with it – we did not take the necessary steps to manage this growth effectively and sustainably.”

With respect to traffic solutions, she put forward a number of recommendations including a national AI driven platform to centrally manage the issue of permits which are currently issued by local councils often leading to uncoordinated road closures and traffic flow obstruction; more efficiency in roadworks and roadside services; mobility as a service (maas) plans taking into consideration demography and climate whilst also carrying out parallel corrective initiatives to address the issues creating congestion; incentives for businesses that promote and support transition to shared or green mobility; and  co-ordinated proactive enforcement across multiple government authorities and agencies. The fireside chat was moderated by Rachel Bondi Attard, Head of Media and Communication Strategist at The Malta Chamber.

Mark Laurence Zammit, Assistant Editor at Times of Malta, was the host of this event.