Many Gozitans are faced with a dearth of opport-unities in their home island. If there is one issue that really worries Gozitan it is this. It is always at the top of the priority list in terms of policy.
Low employment and high unemployment means only one thing: less income for Gozitans- Anton Refalo
The lack of adequate employment opportunities for Gozitans in Gozo has been a constant feature across generations and there is no easy formula to address it. The issue can only be addressed if there is a vision and real motivation to tackle it. This, in turn, must be followed by good governance and a lot of hard work.
Unfortunately, the Ministry for Gozo has failed to provide such requirements, especially over the past four years. It failed to create the right environment that is necessary for the creation of jobs. Not only that but, at times, even if unconsciously, it also managed to put in place a system that simply discourages the formation of human capital.
Nowadays, we are witnessing the result of a decade-old system where the incentives to work and to invest have been distorted by clientelism and bad governance.
Such a system makes it difficult for individuals to put their money into the economy. It discourages the private sector from investing.
During 2010, foreign direct investment in Gozo amounted to just €3 million, which is less than 0.5 per cent of the total foreign direct investment in Malta. Last year, 149 new business units were registered in Gozo compared with 3,978 in Malta. Equally worrying is that the success rate of new businesses in Gozo is much lower. In fact, 80 business units closed down in 2011. This represents a ‘death rate’ of over 53 per cent compared with a rate below 40 per cent in Malta.
Despite such problems, those responsible for the administration of Gozo were and are still wasting energy and resources on trivial and petty issues. It seems it is more interested in publishing colourful magazines than addressing the real issues. While engaging in this, we have an island that is regressing instead of progressing.
Gozo finds itself in a situation where factories have practically disappeared and hotels have closed down to be replaced by blocks of apartments. Jobs, real productive jobs, have and are being lost.
The direct result of this administrative inaction is simply a severe lack of employment opportunities. This is translated in an employment rate that is much lower when compared with Malta. Only the southern harbour area has a lowest employment rate than Gozo. Figures released by the Employment Training Corporation shows that the number of people registering for work in Gozo is increasing.
The number of unemployed would be drastically higher were it not for the fact that hundreds, if not thousands, of young and not so young Gozitans are crossing over to Malta in search of employment opportunities.
While, in the past, almost all those that used to work in Malta were employed with the public sector this no longer applies today. Nowadays, a significant proportion is employed in the private sector, ranging from low-skilled workers to highly-educated professionals.
Low employment and high unemployment means only one thing: less income for Gozitans. It is no coincidence that the average household’s income in Gozo is about €2,000 below that in Malta.
We must be realistic. Everyone is fully aware that the problems hindering the development of Gozo cannot be solved simply by waving a magic wand. But the Government has a big role to play. It can influence the development of Gozo as its long-term success and its capacity to build wealth and generate jobs depend on productivity gains which, in turn, depend on good governance.
And it is here where legitimate debate begins because unplanned action does not necessarily help. The wrong kind of policy may temporarily increase employment but it will hinder employment opportunities in the longer term because it will channel workers into the wrong kind of employment. Large-scale public recruitments, particularly prior to election time aimed solely to win votes, will only lead to a shortage of labour available for more productive jobs.
It will make longer term projects more difficult because insufficient skills will not be available.
Labour is promising to work hard not only to generate jobs for Gozitans in Gozo but also to focus on the quality of work. A concrete and sustained effort is promised with the aim to attract employment in specific sectors such as the ICT sector and private sector back office work.
A renewed and focused strategy will also address the tourism sector, which will represent the most socially, economically and even environmentally viable and sustainable means through which economic growth and job creation in Gozo can occur.
The author is a Labour MP.