Manufacturing to get €100 million injection

The government is planning to inject €100 million as new grants to manufacturing industry as incentives given by Malta Enterprise in the past five years resulted in additional jobs and more investment from the private sector, the prime minister said today.

During a visit to Microteck Medical Malta – a factory based in the Mosta Technopark specialising in the production of medical devices – Dr Gonzi said that Malta enjoyed a 40 per cent increase in foreign direct investment in the manufacturing industry and increased its exports in this sector by around 20 per cent over the past legislature

He said that this was possible through various schemes designed specifically for the needs of the manufacturing sector by Malta Enterprise which sustained certain industries in difficult times and helped others to increase their presence in Malta.

The Prime Minister said that the government wanted to encourage more investment in manufacturing. Apart from the allocation of new grants, it will be converting tax credits into grants and will allocate €40 million of EU funds to create specialised investment schemes for the industry.