Prime Minister Joseph Muscat will be travelling to Beijing next week to sign an agreement for a “groundbreaking” five-year plan with the Chinese government.
Speaking during a business breakfast yesterday, he said the memorandum of understanding would act “as a blueprint for multifaceted cooperation between the two countries which will lead to a number of initiatives over the coming five years”.
“The Chinese are fascinated with Malta,” he said, adding the agreement could lead to more Chinese investment in sectors ranging from aviation and maritime to infrastructure and transport.
The deal, which has been a year in the making, would open a lot of opportunities for more direct investment or strategic partnerships between the two countries.
Through this scheme, many are falling in love with Malta
This will be the second major agreement to be signed between the Labour government and the Chinese in less than a year.
Last March, the government agreed to sell a 33 per cent stake in Enemalta Corporation and the Delimara power plant to State company Shanghai Electric.
In return, the Chinese government will be paying €320 million.
The Prime Minister said that despite these agreements with China, the government “will not be putting all its eggs in one basket” and is seeking similar agreements with other countries, particularly the Gulf States.
Discussing the current economic climate, Dr Muscat said that his government was registering improvements across many sectors, particularly in the financial and maritime sectors, but was also wary that exports and retail are not performing as well.
He said that while retail may be affected by the large amounts of money being spent on internet shopping – amounting to €66 million only through the PayPal system last year – the government wants to improve the potential of more Maltese exports.
Dr Muscat said the government would soon be setting up a joint venture with private industry to facilitate and enhance international business and export opportunities for locally based companies.
Referring to the controversial citizenship scheme launched recently, Dr Muscat said this initiative was ahead of its time and was proving to be very successful in attracting the right individuals to Malta.
“Through this scheme, many are falling in love with Malta,” Dr Muscat said.