|
Considerable interest in Business Promotion Act
by David Kelleher
The Business Promotion Act has been well received by certain
target sectors and activities and foreign companies already
in Malta have shown great interest in the new BPA.
Speaking to The Malta Business Weekly, Stephen Zerafa from the
Malta Development Corporation, said the BPA was still in its
early stages and a bit too soon to gauge any response.
“However, the feedback we have had so far seems to indicate
that the BPA has been well received by those falling under the
target sectors and activities. Also, foreign companies already
based in Malta have shown great interest in the new BPA,”
Mr Zerafa said.
The BPA replaces the Industrial Development Act, offering a
wider range of investment opportunities for local and foreign
companies based in Malta. The IDA focused mostly on exporting
companies but the BPA now gives incentives and tax benefits
to a whole list
of companies in various target
sectors.
Asked whether the MDC has taken a leading role in the BPA’s
promotion, along with other private consultancy firms who have
already organised various seminar to explain the concepts behind
the BPA, Mr Zerafa said the Corporation had taken a leading
role in promoting the Act.
“First of all, the MDC organised a seminar for the staff
of MDC, Metco, IPSE, Mimcol, ETC, Inland Revenue and the Ministry
for Economic Services. This was done so that staff from these
entities would become more familiar with the new Act and so
that we could collectively provide a better service to our clients.
“Three more seminars were held for top Industrialists,
SMEs and business partners – lawyers, accountants, students
and other interested parties. We also addressed a BPA ‘talk’
for branch and area managers of a leading bank. MDC experts
have also been key speakers in seminars organised by leading
Business Consultancy firms,” Mr Zerafa said.
The MDC has also promoted the BPA through promotional material
in a number of languages and it has been publicised in a number
of foreign publications and websites.
“A number of seminars organised by the MDC abroad (Milan,
Paris, Munich and Tokyo) have featured industrial opportunities
in Malta including those arising from the BPA,” he added.
It is still too early to say whether there has been a market
increase in interest from foreign companies after the government
announced the BPA, Mr Zerafa said, however he added that it
was an ongoing process and a number of companies “are preparing
proposals to submit to the MDC for approval”.
Getting the message across to local companies will take some
time and there are numerous areas that many are still unaware
of. “The BPA has a number of ramifications, therefore certain
details still have to be understood fully,” Mr Zerafa said.
The MDC will be having another BPA seminar in Gozo on 10 May.
“Our main focus is on ‘ono-to-one’ meetings with
suitable companies abroad. During these meetings the advantages
the BPA offers are highlighted. This will continue as a matter
of course,” he explained.
Asked whether the privatisation of a number of Maltese entities
has been further encouraged because of the BPA, Mr Zerafa replied:
“We do not believe the two are related to each other. However,
the MDC’s promotion of Malta as an investment location
has also increased interest in the privatisation process of
a number of Maltese companies.”
|
