The Malta Business Foundation (MBF) officially inaugurated its new offices at the La Valette Business Centre in Brussels, on July 12. The hosts of the event were the presidents of the three employer bodies constituting the MBF (the Malta Federation of Industry, the Malta Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise, and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association), and the VIPs included Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Commissioner Joe Borg.
Besides high ranking officials from the three employer bodies, there were also representatives from Malta's Permanent Representation, the bilateral Embassy to Belgium, MEPs, representatives from UNICE, Eurochambres and HOTREC, Brussels-based representation offices of various European regions and other offices, including think tanks, that have a very close working relationship with the Malta Business Bureau (MBB) in Brussels.
Adrian Bajada, FOI president and president of the Malta Business Foundation welcomed the guests and recalled the development of the Bureau and eventually the Foundation.
He emphasised the need for the Maltese Business Community to have a permanent representation in Brussels which is greatly enhancing the two-way links between Malta and the European Community. Mr Bajada also thanked previous presidents of the FOI and the Chamber of Commerce for their foresight in their decision to set up the Brussels office. He particularly thanked Reginald Fava for his dedication to the completion of the office in a short time and to its very high standards.
Dr Gonzi then delivered his speech in which he emphasised the need for the Maltese business community to maximise on the opportunities made possible by EU membership. He also appealed to the MBB and to public institutions involved in the decision making of EU-related issues to work closer together.
The Prime Minister then spoke on the ratification of the European Constitutional Treaty in the Maltese Parliament and how this put an end to the divisive positions that the country held with regard to Europe in the recent past.
The MBB - originally the EU advisory office of the Malta Federation of Industry and the Malta Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise, was set up in 1996. Last year the two bodies were joined by the MHRA. A fully-fledged operation with enhanced resources started operating in the newly acquired premises, named La Valette Business Centre, close to the Commission's headquarters at the end of last year. The centre is seeking to create synergies between Maltese business operators and enterprises in various parts of Europe.
The MBB's main functions have remained largely unchanged since 1996 and include the creation of a high profile and coherent image for Maltese business among EU institutions and representative European business organisations, providing intelligence and policy advice to MBB members on existing and "in the pipeline" legislation, organising tailor-made familiarisation visits to Brussels for members, the organisation of information seminars in Malta and identifying EU funding opportunities, including matching partners for EU programmes.
The office today has four core staff members, two based in Brussels (plus a stagiaire/office manager) and two in Malta. Since last year, the MBB is also liaising with the Maltese Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and the Cabinet of Commissioner Joe Borg and Maltese officials in the various EU Institutions besides the enhanced Permanent Representation.
Over the past weeks, the MBB has been focusing on the renewed Lisbon strategy and the business implications of the Constitutional Treaty, which has now been unanimously ratified by the Maltese Parliament.
On the fringes of the inauguration, the MBB Brussels office organised meetings for the high level MBF delegation with the Cabinet members of Commissioner Borg and Commissioner Verheugen, as well as officials in DG Enterprise and DG Internal Market. Bilateral meetings were also organised with UNICE, Eurochambres and HOTREC.