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Government task force meets
only twice in seven months
by Ivan Brincat
A task force set up by the government to identify business
opportunities in the European Union will be reconstituted following
changes which will be made to the set up of the Malta Council
for Economic Development.
Government sources told The Malta Business Weekly that the Euro-Assistance
Coordination Task-Force (ACT) will fall under the Office of
the Prime Minister. When the Malta Council for Economic and
Social Development (MCESD) starts functioning it will include
all social partners and it could thus act as a liaison with
the ACT.
However, some constituted bodies claim that the Euro-Assistance
Coordination Task Force has not been meeting regularly and they
have not been informed of any changes to the task force. GRTU
director general Vince Farrugia told The Malta Business Weekly
the last meeting before the one held last week was on 13 October.
“Why have we not been meeting when such a task-force is
of prime importance to the country?” he asked.
Mr Farrugia said all the constit-uted bodies are represented
on the ACT and while the proposed changes are expected to be
implemented, the ACT was never discussed at the MCED.
“We have been told that everyone can apply for TAIEX funds.
But we have to make sure that everyone knows how to apply for
these funds,” Mr Farrugia said.
The GRTU director general said that the ACT had to be the executive
arm working proactively to coordinate and assess the potential
to tap EU funds. “This would have been valid not only as
a pre-accession strategy but also as a post-accession strategy.”
Mr Farrugia had walked out of the last ACT meeting saying he
did not want to take part in something which was doing nothing.
“We did not have a meeting for six months,” he said.
The Euro-Assistance Coordination Task-Force has a key role to
play.
In its terms of reference the ACT was responsible to identify
opportunities available within the European Union that would
assist public and private initiatives in economic, industrial,
social and cultural development and advancement and cooperation.
ACT was set up to promote awareness both on these opportunities
and on the criteria for gaining access to them so that the benefits
arising from the availability of the funds would be maximised.
It also had to monitor the access to such opportunities and
the adherence to established criteria in order to ensure maximum
benefits to applicant candidates and coordination on a national
basis.
The ACT also had to bring to the attention of the authorities
concerned those areas of omissions that may prejudice the full
benefit of assistance available within the European Union.
Among the programmes identified as potential sources for EU
Funds were Socrates, Leonardo, Youth, Culture 2000, the Fifth
Framework Programme on Research and Technological Development,
Synergy, LIFE, the SME Multiannual Programme, ECIP, Customs
2000 and ISPO.
Moreover, the ACT also had to look at the possibility of tapping
into Euro-Med Programme funds.
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