The strategic objects of Malta’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion (MFTP) refer to a number of global issues of concern to Malta, including small states (article XIX). Malta can pursue this objective more enthusiastically in its foreign policy activity.
In this article, we augur that Malta could have an even more significant role to play in championing the interests of small (and mainly island) states in the international arena, with clear benefits for both Malta’s foreign and trade policy, as well as for the economic development of small states.
Thirty-seven members of the United Nations are designated Small Island Developing States (SIDS), operating under the auspices of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). This is a vocal and influential group of developing states, acting as a lobby group within the United Nations.
AOSIS participates actively in international negotiations, mostly in matters relating to the environment, notably climate change. Malta was part of AOSIS up to 2004, when it was still classified as a developing country. On becoming an EU member state, it became a donor country, whereas AOSIS is made up of recipients of Official Development Assistance.
During the past three decades, there have been three global conferences on SIDS: Barbados, 1994; Mauritius, 2005; and Samoa, 2014. Malta has generally kept a low profile in these meetings. When the EU was drawing up its position as a group of donor countries, in preparation for the 2014 Samoa meeting, Malta did not grasp the opportunity to champion the challenges faced by SIDS, and influencing the EU position towards this end.
Ironically, many Maltese persons are well known internationally for their expertise on small island states. The Islands and Small State Institute (ISSI) of the University of Malta is recognised as a centre of excellence in this field, and some scholars associated with the ISSI have, for many years, been involved in promoting the interests of small states, advancing scholarship in this area, offering their expertise to international organisations and advising SIDS governments.
Malta could have an even more significant role to play in championing the interests of small (and mainly island) states in the international arena
The government of Malta has offered some scholarships allowing candidates from SIDS to pursue climate action-related programmes of study at the University. It is also in the process of setting up a Small States Centre of Excellence, with financial support from the Commonwealth Secretariat.
It can play an even more significant role within the EU by lobbying in favour of SIDS in various matters, including those related to Overseas Development Assistance allocation – in other words, championing SIDS interests within the EU.
This will certainly generate prestige and reputational value for Malta, and 37 UN member states would consider Malta as their major supporter. It should be noted that currently, the EU is a major donor to SIDS through bilateral dedicated schemes, including via the so-called African, Caribbean Pacific Group of States Secretariat and through multilateral schemes, including those operated by the World Bank.
Malta has tried several times to present itself as a major player on the world stage, managing to do so at least twice: when Arvid Pardo was Malta’s ambassador to the UN and initiated the Law of the Sea, and with the setting up of the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCCC). On both occasions, the intent was not short-term material gain, but Malta’s stance in this regard offered global moral leadership.
What we are proposing here is that Malta takes a similar position within the EU and, instead of asking the question “What’s in it for us?”, we would strive to root for the interests of other small states.
Apart from improving Malta’s image within the international community, the foreign policy stance that we are suggesting can also lead to material benefits for Malta, including improved trade links and increased possibility of funding for projects intended to further the interests of SIDS.
If Malta were to adopt this foreign policy perspective, it should start within the EU institutions. Malta’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs may wish to brief the permanent representation to the EU and the staff at the Brussels embassy to take an active role in matters that relate to SIDS, particularly within DEVCO and the ACP secretariat, and to lobby in favour of SIDS wherever and whenever possible, by also taking advantage of the expertise present within Malta’s civil service and at the University.
Such a policy stance should also be promoted within the United Nations and its agencies. In defending and supporting the interests of SIDS, Malta would be a major player on the world stage, as it would be looked upon as the champion of about 20 per cent of UN member states.
Malta can also signal its intent to promote the interests of SIDS by increasing its ODA allocation to these states, especially through projects implemented by non-governmental developmental organisations. There is expertise in this regard in Malta, and reliable partnerships have already been established.
This article represents the personal views of the authors, who are academic members of staff at the University of Malta.