Selling Malta in Germany

"After decades of Maltese-German relations, a major potential still remains for developing bilateral activities in business, culture and tourism," the Maltese ambassador to Germany, Dr John Paul Grech told The Sunday Times in an exclusive interview at the embassy here.

"Following my accreditation to the Federal President on October 31, 2005, I was surprised to find how well-known Malta is in Germany. On the level of the general public, one reason is obviously the widespread, centuries-old charitable activities (clinics, ambulances, elder care, etc.) of the German Knights of Malta, both the Roman Catholic Sovereign Military Order of Malta (Malteser Hilfsdienst) and the Johanniter Orden Protestant knights. The Maltese eight-point cross is seen everywhere. Another is doubtless the popularity of the 'Malteser' brand of spirits."

"In addition, there is the enormous interest in history of so many Germans, especially the Berliners, and Germany's high level of foreign travel - 80 million Germans spend more each year on tourism abroad than 300 million Americans.

"As a result, the embassy's recent Open Day held during Germany's All Nations Day attracted nearly 3,000 Berliners. They picked up brochures, watched film clips, asked questions, drank Kinnie and participated in a raffle whose prize was a week's holiday in a leading Malta hotel. We also receive a steady stream of enquiries throughout the year."

Germany's immense territory as well as the embassy's small size meant that a very selective approach to projecting Malta was needed, according to Dr Grech. He is assisted by two diplomats, a German cultural officer working in close contact with the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts and three support staff, flanked by a small network of German honorary consuls across the country.

Dr Grech saw encouraging prospects for developing contacts with Malta in former East Germany, which includes the major economic centres of Dresden, Leipzig and the former East Berlin - where, for historical reasons, English is far less known than the rest of the country. Lessons learnt from prioritising this area, where the ambassador has already made numerous presentations to chambers of commerce, business conferences and social clubs, could then be applied for a more broadly-based promotion in the rest of the country.

Package for business travellers

"One very promising approach is the innovative package for business travellers being put together by Malta Enterprise (with an office in Munich) and the Malta Tourism Authority (with an office in Frankfurt) in co-operation with the Malta's English language school sector.

"The package will comprise meetings in Malta with business leaders and government officials, sightseeing but also intensive courses in business English. In fact, this is an adaptation of a product already offered for the UK by an agency in Leipzig. Our Malta package will have the added attractions of competitive Maltese prices, and good weather!

"This initiative is to be 'test marketed' on a group of 20 members of the Leipzig Chamber of Commerce who will be visiting the country next April," Dr Grech explained. "A careful assessment of this visit and participants' reactions, will enable us to develop this 'product' on the wider German market."

Continuing to promote Malta as an investment venue for German business involved intelligent marketing of its present economic attractions. No longer the 'low-wage' production centre which drew German and other investors in the 1970s and 1980s, its present strengths, such as IT, financial services, EU membership combined with a mid-Mediterranean location, a highly-educated English-speaking workforce and Freeport's growing international role needed to be well projected.

'Niche' tourism

"Clearly, we must have a higher profile in Frankfurt, Germany's financial capital," Dr Grech insisted. "I am lobbying for the appointment of an honorary consul there, and things are starting to move, but such procedures take some time. We also need to see more Maltese business people visiting Germany, whether at company or Federation of Industry level.

"Despite the already high numbers of German tourists and cruise liner visitors to Malta, a major potential remains for developing 'niche' tourism - both the growing 'history and culture tourism' sector as well as senior citizens - now over 20 per cent of Germany's population.

"The low-cost airline GermanWings will start flights to Malta in April, providing a major potential boost to its attractiveness as a destination. Fortunately, MTA has an increasingly strong presence at the annual International Travel Börse held each March in Berlin, flanked by leading Maltese hotels and all its major tour operators."

Promoting Maltese culture in Germany is another priority. "After some lobbying, I was pleased to obtain an invitation for Professor Anthony Bonanno; head of the University of Malta's Department of Classics and Archaeology, to give a lecture on February 14 entitled 'A Unique Prehistoric Cultural Achievement: the Megalithic Temples of Malta' at Berlin's top-flight Urania centre, which hosts presentations by world-renowned scientists. In October, I will attend at Bremen Free University a symposium on the Maltese language, organised by Maltese-speaking Professor Thomas Stolz, which will also inaugurate the International Association of Maltese Linguistics."

EU Presidency

Germany's six-month EU presidency will involve a challenging additional workload for the embassy. "Every day, we receive Presidency information which we then distribute by e-mail to the interested ministries in Malta - although the corresponding German ministries are also in direct contact with them," Dr Grech indicated.

"Dozens of meetings are scheduled all over Germany for senior officials, parliamentarians, experts as well as the formal EU Councils of Ministers. I am at the disposal of each Maltese ministry involved for on the spot assistance. However, if they want me to participate in Malta's delegation to a meeting, then it is for the Foreign Minister, Dr Frendo to decide on my deployment.

"I will of course be involved with the EU 50th Anniversary heads of state and government summit (March 24-25), attended by the Prime Minister, Dr Gonzi."

Well before the Presidency began, Dr Grech carried out an intensive series of contacts with all the lead ministries, putting across Malta's priority EU concerns such as illegal immigration and the need for a formal, regular and high-level EU-Arab League dialogue.

"The interest I find in the general public is very much reflected in the warm welcome I have found from the German government," Dr Grech concluded. "Our small size is not an issue: all doors are open. We are respected EU partners and seen as key players in the Mediterranean region".