Putting competition at the top of Malta's agenda

"Beyond Surviving: Competing to Succeed" is the title of the next conference being organised by Economic and Management Consultancy Services (EMCS), on Wednesday, December 11, at the Portomaso Suite at the Hilton Malta.

The conference - the 11th in the series organised by EMCS since 1998 - echoes the title of the very first one, organised in February that year: "The Competitiveness of the Maltese Economy".

Dr John C. Grech, chairman and managing director of EMCS, said that this underlined the importance of the subject. At that conference, he recalled, they had proposed to set up a National Competitiveness Council. The Malta Council for Economic and Social Development (MCESD) should be equipped to deal with this, and should be used in a more creative fashion, Dr Grech told The Sunday Times.

"We have presented a proposal to MCESD on how to introduce a process to stimulate competition and seek to engage all its members to focus on the importance of the subject. However, they do not seem to have taken a decision on the proposal," he explained.

The December 11 conference will be addressed, as has become the custom, by some high-powered local and foreign speakers.

The opening presentation, as usual, will be made by Dr Grech himself, who will speak on "What makes us competitive and what doesn't - revisiting Malta's unique value proposition".

"We at EMCS believe it is necessary for Malta to put competition at the top of its agenda. However, a major cultural change is required to do this. Unfortunately, surviving is taken as successful in itself, but this means we are actually falling behind if we do not try to get ahead. Just surviving is not good enough. We have to compete in order to get ahead, not just getting along.

"We must not say we are better off, but how we are faring with the rest of the world. We have to tackle the situation on two levels: the social partners must put competition on the front burner; and the attitude of Maltese corporations should no longer judge their performance by looking at the past, but by following an international benchmark," Dr Grech insisted.

"We become a first-class country when we identify areas in which we excel. The moment we manage to strike a note of that type, the whole profile will change."

Dr Grech will be followed by Karl P. Sauvant, director of UNCTAD's Division on Investment Technology and Enterprise Development (DITE) in Geneva. Best known as the author of the UN publication World Investment Report, which updates the situation on foreign direct investment, Dr Sauvant will speak on "What attracts foreign direct investment to a country? How to become a winner in attracting FDI".

An authority on the subject, Dr Sauvant will be coming to Malta purposely for the EMCS conference.

The next speaker will be Central Bank Governor Michael Bonello, who will address the subject of "Strengths and weaknesses in Malta's competitive position". Between 1983 and 1999 (when he was appointed governor) Mr Bonello held a number of senior positions with UNCTAD in Geneva.

Another distinguished foreign speaker is Anthony Assender, vice-president of Standard & Poor's Credit Market Services, who will speak on "Credit ratings - the competitive landscape".

Dr Grech said that EMCS has had a long relationship with S&P. Although this will be Mr Assender's first visit to Malta, he is very well briefed on the local situation. S&P's is one of the world's most prestigious and most influential credit rating agencies. "It will be interesting to hear how they operate and look at a country's investment prospects and possibilities," Dr Grech added.

Mr Assender will be followed by Professor Ali Bayar, president of the Global Economic Modelling Network (EcoMod). His presentation will deal with "Facing up to the Competition: the realities of competing in an EU environment and beyond".

Professor Bayar, who teaches economics at the University of Brussels, has developed an economic model which endogenises external sectors, making it a more powerful tool especially in the case of import-reliant economies like Malta.

The European Commission has built its own models on Professor Bayar's network. He has been to Malta several times and knows the island very well.

The last speaker of the morning session will be Tonio Portughese, human resources director at ST Microlectronics Malta and recently appointed vice-president worldwide director of Human Resource Development at STM.

Mr Portughese will speak on "What makes a winning company: the experience and potential of ST Microelectronics in Malta".

After lunch, an interactive discussion will be held with the panel of speakers and with Louis Farrugia, group chief executive of Simonds Farsons Cisk, Joe Zammit Tabona, president of the Federation of Industry and chairman of Malta Enterprise, and Gejtu Vella, secretary-general of the Union Haddiema Maghqudin.

The discussion will focus on achieving competitiveness, the obstacles, prospects and opportunities, and what concrete action can be taken to achieve and sustain competitiveness. The seminar should be concluded by 4 p.m.

Those who wish to participate in the conference should apply to EMCS Ltd., Airways House, 4th Floor, High Street, Sliema SLM 15, tel. 2134-1848/9, fax: 2131-8677; e-mail: mariella.cini@emcs.com.mt. Website: www.-emcs.com.mt