What EU-funded projects are currently under way at the MTA?
EU Projects - MTA
The Strategic Planning and Research Division of MTA is responsible for the co-ordination of EU-related matters in the area of tourism within MTA. In particular, the issues of greatest concern relate to (a) funding opportunities and co-ordination of EU-funded projects related to tourism, (b) contribution towards the drafting of EU position papers and policy documents on areas which have a direct or indirect impact on the tourism industry, and (c) provision of general or specific information to the trade on European related issues (legislation, trends and developments, public policy, statistics and information, etc).
Introduction
The Strategic Planning and Research Division, within the Malta Tourism Authority, has been working for the past twenty-four months to secure European funding both through pre-accession and post-accession financial programmes. In the pre-accession programmes, the MTA has obtained funding in three areas. In the first place, a Tourism Skills Analysis and Employment Forecast for the years 2004-2008 will be completed by the end of 2004 and will be used for the proper implementation of the European Social Funds projects which the MTA will be implementing after accession. Technical assistance is also secured, through the European Commission’s Directorate General for Enlargement, to assist the MTA’s Enforcement Directorate in the implementation of the EU Package Travel & Timeshare Directives, mainly in the areas of consumer protection and consumer rights. Thirdly, direct funding is being tapped from the Commission’s Tourism Unit, which falls under its Directorate General for Enterprise, and this will assist the MTA in carrying out a feasibility study on a new methodology for assessing the economic impact of tourism in Malta, in line with World Tourism Organization recommendations. Over 80% of the costs for these pre-accession projects will be funded through EU financial sources.
For the post-accession programmes, the MTA is working on several channels through which projects can be implemented with European assistance. Three projects have been submitted during the call for applications for Structural Funds projects. Two of these fall under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), which assists the local economy through infrastructural upgrading and restructuring, and one under the European Social Fund (ESF), which targets human resource development. The MTA has also been assisting Heritage Malta in its submission of another ERDF project in the area of heritage site conservation and interpretation. The total value of the MTA-proposed projects alone amounts to EUR 3.9 million. If accepted, over 50% of the project costs will be covered by European funds.
The MTA is also working on the preparatory work for projects falling under other European Programmes, including the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism, as well as the INTERREG programme for which international partners will co-finance a range of projects with direct tourism relevance. The value of projects for which preparatory work is currently under way amounts to around EUR 6.5 million, up to 75% of which could be funded through European sources.
