In Maltese we have the saying miskina t-tajra li titwieled f’post ħażin which literally means wretched is that bird born in the wrong place. This saying is very apt for many Gozitans because although we strive to achieve, the barriers and constraints are more than considerable. Gozitans can deal with and surmount the natural hurdles but many others are imposed, and that needs to change.

… Gozo needs a much stronger voice in all existing fora both locally and at European level- Justyne Caruana

The Gozitan character is well-known for being entrepreneurial and ingenious. However, this potential is currently neglected. Due to excessive administrative pressures and red tape, many Gozitans feel asphyxiated and prefer to go and invest in Malta or not bother completely. This lack of a feel-good factor or faith in our potential and future within Gozo is, unfortunately, becoming ever more crystallised.

The latest statistics by the National Statistics Office on a regional level show that for 2009, Gozo’s Gross Domestic Product stood at €331.7 million or 5.7 per cent of the country’s total GDP. Gozo’s population is about 7.5 per cent of the country’s total. This indicates that per capita, GDP is lower in Gozo than in Malta. The global economic crises increased the challenges already faced by the island’s small economy due to double insularity. The extra cost means that both local and foreign investors prefer to base their operations in Malta.

The most immediate repercussion is the lack of job creation which is the biggest headache and preoccupation we have, especially with regards to our younger generation who after years and years of hard work and study do not manage to find employment in Gozo. They have little choice but to leave the island to find a decent job with a decent pay. Again we cannot neglect the pay gap which exists between Malta and Gozo and this adds to the discrimination Gozitans have to endure and live with.

The warning light is on but in spite of this, inactivity from the central government is the order of the day. Our businessmen complain, and rightly so, that while they pay taxes, VAT and all other relevant charges, they do not get the help and assistance they are entitled to by right. We have a nearly non-existent Malta Enterprise specific policy for Gozo. If the industrial sector is floundering, the least that can be done is to provide the necessary and required support. We have been waiting for a sound package of incentives to boost Gozitan economy for years now but none has been forthcoming.

The lack of structures and resources are lacking in all sectors. For example, the tourism industry lacks a vision for Gozo – a vision which the Malta Tourism Authority repeatedly failed to attain.

Meanwhile we have the Gozo Tourism Association who have a vision for tourism in Gozo but do not have the administrative and financial machinery and means to do so. It is true that recently the Ministry for Gozo created a position to try and fill the lacuna as part of the Eco-Gozo echo but again Eco-Gozo on many fronts appears to be simply a means whereby funds are being distributed as a bait to catch votes; clientelism by another name. This does not serve the concept let alone implement a truly ecological island with added value. The survey conducted recently by the GTA reveals that the tourism sector is doing badly and therefore we cannot afford to procrastinate any longer.

We should target specific sectors for creating incentives for job creation in Gozo. This has been done in the past by Labour governments and can be done again. The recent and upcoming Gozitan University and MCAST graduates deserve a plan for jobs in Gozo within the immediate coming years.

I honestly believe Gozo needs a much stronger voice in all existing fora both locally and at European level. Gozo’s interests are evidently not a priority for THE government and whenever a Gozo issue comes up, for some reason or other it always ends up absorbed in other matters.

I think I am being fair when I assert that the Gozo agenda is determined by personal contacts alone and the rest is just PR without activity to back it up.

Gozo and Gozitans deserve so much more.

Dr Caruana is a Labour member of Parliament.