During an Aviation Clusters meeting, Maltese minister for tourism Dr. Edward Zammit Lewis stated that with regards to its aviation industry, Malta wants to keep attracting new business, however it is of utmost importance that Malta focuses on growing its existing business. The European Aviation Clusters Partnership (EACP) is an association of European aerospace businesses with 31 member companies in 12 countries.
During the meeting, Dr. Zammit Lewis further stated that Malta needs to expand its concept of business aviation through developing industries within the aviation industry. It has been recognised that due to its dynamic and fast-paced nature and in view of existing and emerging competition, Malta needs to increase its response time and flexibility in this respect.
For these reasons, the Government is committed to reducing bureacracy and facilitate the process for companies and individuals of accessing the industry. Following interaction and meetings with various stakeholders within the industry, an Aviation Desk for companies and individuals will be set up in order to handle queries related to aviation and any entities with proposals related to this are invited to put forward their ideas.
The minister further stated that the draft Aviation Policy is to be updated in order to set the direction for Malta's aviation industry and this is currently being discussed with other ministries to ensure a joint effort in line with other Government priorities. In the meantime, the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with the Malta Council for Science & Technology (MCST) and the National Aerospace Laboratory (NCR) is working on the National Areospace Centre as its next project.
A proposal has already been submitted and a grant of €375,000 was awarded in order to further develop the business model according to the needs and requriements of the local industry and ensure that the Centre of Excellence can truly operate as a supporting infrastructure to the industry.
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