The government is currently designing a national platform to promote female entrepreneurship, Economy Minister Chris Cardona said yesterday.
As part of this strategy, a number of ambassadors from various backgrounds will be appointed to promote entrepreneurship among young people, especially girls and young women.
The concept was not entirely new to Malta, Dr Cardona said. It was done in the past when EU funding for such an initiative was available.
However, he added, efforts should now be redoubled so that the initiative could be started once again.
“It needs to be a continuous strategy – consistent and coordinated – not just sporadic initiatives taken once in a while. We need all stakeholders on board.”
Women have the tendency to start businesses in less innovative and risk-averse areas
Dr Cardona was speaking yesterday at a meeting with Zita Gumbai, a former MEP from Hungary who is currently the president of the Party of European Socialists (PES) Women.
Former MEP Claudette Abela Baldacchino said she was “shocked” that according to a recent Aġenzija Żgħażagħ survey, only 10 per cent of young women (as opposed to 30 per cent of young men) said they would consider standing for election to the European Parliament.
Dr Cardona pointed out that Malta had one of the lowest rates of female entrepreneurship in Europe, with under five per cent of Malta’s female workforce identifying themselves as self-employed.
The gender gap in the labour market, he continued, was rapidly decreasing but in self-employment it was still wide.
“Moreover, women have the tendency to start businesses in less innovative and risk-averse areas,” Dr Cardona said.
It was the experience of many women that they had to try harder to succeed, as well as retain family responsibilities.
A recent report by Standard & Poor’s affirmed that the Maltese economy was stable and expected to continue growing in the coming years, he added.
This, the report noted, was partly thanks to reforms implemented by the government, such as initiatives aimed at encouraging women to enter the work force.
“We have also, of course, been trying to lift burdens from business,” Dr Cardona said.
“When drafting legislation, we need to remember that female entrepreneurs are also employers, and that legislation must not over-burden business with employment compliance costs as this can backfire on women themselves.”