Time to observe and absorb

Some are more sure than others of Malta's potential as a yachting hub. Some are more concerned than others about the urgent needs of the local yachting industry. Some are more perplexed than others for Malta not keeping pace with the development of this industry. Some are more downcast than others knowing that, while countries surrounding us have developed yachting facilities, in most cases many years after us, they have overtaken us and are miles ahead of us in terms of the facilities and services they offer.

I do not intend to mention Malta and our yachting industry any further because, at times, it is important to observe and absorb what is going on around you. I came across a report drawn up by Stat-USA/internet, a service of the US Department of Commerce, and posted on the website of Industry Canada, which I felt like sharing. The title of the report was Opportunities In Italy For US Companies Operating In The Design, Planning And Management Of Marinas.

The development and expansion of existing marinas in Italy represents a major opportunity for US companies operating in related sectors. The Italian government is planning to build a coherent network of marinas that will boost the national economy. To achieve this important objective both the regional governments and the port authorities are working on several projects. In some cases, especially when the southern regions are involved, there are also European grants available.

The development of marinas is closely related to the tourism market. Recent data from Istat (the Italian national institute of statistics) indicates an increasing number of tourists interested specifically in the nautical tourism sector. This data reinforces the necessity to renew Italy's marine infrastructure in order to boost the local economy and the pleasure boat market for both foreign and national tourists. Italy faces tough competition from other Mediterranean countries, such as Spain, France and Greece in the EU, Tunisia and Morocco in North Africa and even Turkey. All these countries will undercut Italian nautical tourism if the country doesn't begin to provide appropriate infrastructure. Now, with a favourable euro exchange rate, competition from non-EU members is getting stronger, because Europeans always find it easy to go abroad.

Surveys have highlighted two distinct problems regarding the Italian marinas: (1) marinas are few and poorly distributed along the national territory; (2) most marinas are inefficient and obsolete.

Comparing a southern region to a northern one can be useful to draw a picture of the divided situation of the country. Calabria, a large southern region surrounded by three seas with hundreds of miles of coastline, has about 2,000 mooring berths while Liguria, a northern region smaller than Calabria with a smaller coastline, offers almost 16,000 berths.

The northern regions count for 58 per cent of all available moorings in Italy whereas the 42 per cent in the southern regions include the islands of Sicily and Sardinia, which are considered southern regions.

The fact that most of the work that has to be done to stimulate the expansion of Italian marinas is situated in the south of the country is a positive factor. The Italian government and the European Union will fund targeted projects in key sectors (marine/transport infrastructure among them) to encourage the development of southern Italy.

The Italian government is trying to adapt Italian ports to the increasing demands of marinas to permit them to host recreational crafts. The government's plan starts with renovating existing marinas. To achieve this major objective, Sviluppo Italia, the Italian government's internal development agency, created a company called Italia Navigando. This company is actively programming and implementing several initiatives to build a well-developed network of marinas in nine years. It plans to reconvert existing marinas and build new ones if necessary.

The project is important because it is part of a higher-scale development venture that aims to integrate marinas with tourism centres that will help to develop southern Italy's economy. Italia Navigando supervises the whole project from the initial planning to financing, implementation and, in some cases, the management of the new structure. This new network will be composed of 50 marinas: 40 in southern Italy and 10 in the centre-north of the country. The project is to be in place within nine years and is divided in three triennial plans. For the first triennial plan Italia Navigando expects to connect 20 marinas. The estimated overall cost is of €270 million. The Italian government will invest €200 million in this project.

European financing, together with national and regional financing, will allow investments totalling about €9 billion in the region of Campania. The regional government intends to create a regional network of marinas to support development of tourism and boost the local economy. According to the regional plans, several marinas will be reconverted to improve infrastructure and the quantity and quality of services provided. The most important marina development project in Campania will be in the province of Caserta. The new structure plans to have about 1,000 mooring berths and all the required structures to guarantee a functional sea connection. Something like €35-40 million will be invested in this project.

The main objective in Sicily regarding the development of marinas is to build a network of Sicilian marinas that will maximise the advantages of the island's strategic geographic position. Positioned between the northern Mediterranean and the African coasts, Sicily will be able to provide quality services to pleasure boats as it lies on the crossroads of tourist flows across the Mediterranean. The project is to build a well-developed network of marinas that will allow yachts to circumnavigate the island in assisted stages with a maximum distance of about 30 nautical miles.

One needs go no further. To survive, our yachting industry must have an immediate regeneration solution. No long-term plans are feasible any longer. Malta's 2,000 yachting berths on our five existing marinas are all taken up, with application lists for berths constantly growing longer. Yet, most serious of all, the local trade cannot service requests by foreign yachts planning to visit Malta this summer, I mean in two months' time, because no berths are available. Yes, it is important to observe and absorb, but then?