Updated - The European Programmes Agency, which manages the Erasmus programme in Malta, is awaiting a decision by the European Commission on the release of funds for the programme before proceeding with the final selection of applicants, the Education Ministry said this evening.
A decision by the EU is expected in the coming days.
The Ministry was reacting to a statement issued this morning by the KSU University Students’ Council, which complained about delays in the processing of applications and said that applicants were still in the dark over funding for the programme.
The ministry recalled that last March, the European Commission said that its suspension of the Youth in Action and Lifelong Learning programmes had been partially lifted and the agency could therefore issue calls for application and process the applications, but it could not finalise the choices and inform the applicants until the suspension was completely lifted.This, the ministry said, was what had been done.
Once the suspension was completely lifted, the agency would inform the applicants of its decisions.
The KSU in its statement said it is concerned about the 'deplorable' way in which ‘Erasmus’ student programme applications were being handled by EUPA and the Ministry of Education.
"Such unacceptable delays have left student applicants in the dark as to whether their Erasmus applications will receive the necessary funding that is usually allocated," the council said.
The EU last year imposed a ban on the programme’s funding after complaining about its management in Malta. A partial ban is still in force.
The KSU said it had been trying to reach the authorities in order to have the matter resolved, but no reply had been returned.
Delays, it warned, could thwart the wide range of opportunities that EU membership had created for the students.
It also pointed out that last year, a Direct Exchange Mobility programme was provided as an alternative to Erasmus funding, but it appeared that this was not the case this year.
"This is a clear sign of further deterioration," it said.
It called on the authorities to acknowledge and resolve this 'crisis' as soon as possible, and for student organisations to unite in insisting for their rights.
The ministry said it was not aware of the request for a meeting but was ready to meet the KSU.