The last piece of the jigsaw that has been Malta's preparations to introduce the euro as its national currency fits into place tomorrow when the enabling legislation is to be published.
Alan Camilleri, executive head of the National Euro Changeover Committee, yesterday told The Times Business that everything is now in place, as far as the commission is concerned, with no last-minute hitches being encountered.
Among those in the front line of the changeover in most businesses have been IT staff, with one software company reporting that its staff will be at the office up to 4 a.m. on New Year's Eve and from 10.30 a.m. on New Year's Day to deal with any last-minute enquiries.
This, however, is only a precaution because many IT systems have received software updates that automate the process, with little or no need for human intervention.
Although those with all their IT systems in place have nothing to be concerned about, it is anticipated that there may be some panic among retailers who have not done anything to update their systems to support receiving in lira and giving change in euro as from Tuesday. They are going to face problems in posting their entries and reconciling them in the new national currency. Other businesses may find that their software supplier is no longer in business - at the 11th hour.
Businesses who have not prepared for the changeover will also cause problems for their suppliers.
According to Victor Galea Salomone, president of the Chamber of Commerce, businesses have had plenty of time to look at their own operations and plan the changeover properly.
In his address to the BOV seminar on the changeover last February, he stressed the importance for local businesses to ensure that the organisational processes are in place so that, apart from IT, the entire organisation would be euro convergent.
Training was an essential part of the process, with people in key departments having been sent to courses on the handling of the new currency and its implications on all sectors of the business.
For many businesses, today will be the last trading day, with the IT departments swinging into play from tomorrow and the final preparations taking place right through the weekend and on New Year's Eve.
One senior IT manager said testing had been going on for over six months, with dummy runs having ensured that the data conversion was taking place seamlessly.
"I am very confident that everything will go smoothly because it has worked. All systems are running and we are looking forward to a smooth entry into 2008," he said.
Alan Camilleri, executive head of the National Euro Changeover Committee, yesterday told The Times Business that everything is now in place, as far as the commission is concerned, with no last-minute hitches being encountered.
Among those in the front line of the changeover in most businesses have been IT staff, with one software company reporting that its staff will be at the office up to 4 a.m. on New Year's Eve and from 10.30 a.m. on New Year's Day to deal with any last-minute enquiries.
This, however, is only a precaution because many IT systems have received software updates that automate the process, with little or no need for human intervention.
Although those with all their IT systems in place have nothing to be concerned about, it is anticipated that there may be some panic among retailers who have not done anything to update their systems to support receiving in lira and giving change in euro as from Tuesday. They are going to face problems in posting their entries and reconciling them in the new national currency. Other businesses may find that their software supplier is no longer in business - at the 11th hour.
Businesses who have not prepared for the changeover will also cause problems for their suppliers.
According to Victor Galea Salomone, president of the Chamber of Commerce, businesses have had plenty of time to look at their own operations and plan the changeover properly.
In his address to the BOV seminar on the changeover last February, he stressed the importance for local businesses to ensure that the organisational processes are in place so that, apart from IT, the entire organisation would be euro convergent.
Training was an essential part of the process, with people in key departments having been sent to courses on the handling of the new currency and its implications on all sectors of the business.
For many businesses, today will be the last trading day, with the IT departments swinging into play from tomorrow and the final preparations taking place right through the weekend and on New Year's Eve.
One senior IT manager said testing had been going on for over six months, with dummy runs having ensured that the data conversion was taking place seamlessly.
"I am very confident that everything will go smoothly because it has worked. All systems are running and we are looking forward to a smooth entry into 2008," he said.