What are the New Industries Malta Aims to Attract Over the Next 5 Years

Having recorded incredible development and growth over a short period of time, Malta’s economy has arrived - like much of the world - at a point where things are about to change forever in order to progress to the next evolutionary level. The welfare of society, the entire economy, tax systems and makeup of the workforce will no longer be solely based on the tried and trusted paths of the past few decades: a period that has indeed been very good for the economic welfare of Malta. Past growth levels of the economy in Malta outperformed the rest of Europe’s with an annual average of 6.4% since 2013. Until recently the main driving forces behind Malta’s successful economy was mainly financial services, i-Gaming, construction, manufacturing and tourism, with nearly 3 million tourists visiting Malta in 2019. At the same time, investor confidence remained at an all-time high, underscoring the belief in the country’s economy and all of these factors contributed to improving the living standards for citizens and residents alike. With the rapid changes brought on instantly by the pandemic, Malta was fortunate enough to have squirreled away more than enough savings to see it through these lean times. This down time has also forced many other governments to carefully rethink how business was conducted and if the ways of old could carry on as new scenarios have emerged that are both exciting and extremely promising for the future. Besides being brand new ways to work, live and make money, newly formed industries include a prospect of long-term growth and sustainability for the future, which is quite astonishing if you think how rapidly their existence came about. We look at some of the most promising of these exciting industries Malta is looking to nurture, attract and grow.

• Environmental and Green Industries or Initiatives

Top of mind awareness is the goal of the government to formulate a far-reaching all-encompassing blueprint for the entire Malta that includes all its people and tourism. This will cover the inclusion of green spaces, visual appeal, the creation of different zones and regions, environmentally friendly infrastructure that is also smart, a variety of modes of transport and improved connectivity between Malta and Gozo.

• IT infrastructure and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

In line with the dynamics of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, this will affect all the people of Malta’s daily lives. Innovations of the start of this era has already had a huge impact such as the delivery of communication and entertainment to our homes and businesses, the way we do banking and pay for services via apps and portals, but this is only the beginning. What will follow is not only an expansion on this, but also an increase in automation and peer-to peer machine interaction, many times without the intervention of humans at all. All of this will complement and enhance our capabilities as humans, what we can do and achieve. Generally, this is described as the digital transformation of industry and value creation processes. It will improve efficiency, create a shift in industrial capitalism and at the core of all of this will be AI, robotics and even genetics. In some cases, the lines will be blurred between the different fields and this promise to deliver some of the greatest inventions yet to come. Malta is determined to be on the forefront of this revolution, attracting massive foreign investment and a superior, talented workforce.

• Borderless cooperation, working and learning opportunities

Due to its small population, Malta will continue to reap the benefits of remote working by individuals, whether they are digital nomads coming to Malta or others working remotely on projects for Malta. This already creates opportunities for teaching and learning, as education did not stop during the pandemic but rather continued online. It also caused a shift for many services to be delivered online instead of face-to-face and the benefits of this are numerous: less demand for premises to host workers, less traffic and pollution and an increase in the wellbeing of employees who work successfully and productively from home. Many local residents in digital professions now also form part of global teams, thus picking up invaluable knowledge and skills from global industry leaders.

• Demographic shifts that create further opportunities for the creation of small, productive and innovative gig-based businesses

Due to the digital revolution, people will also be able to work for longer, many past retirement age and comfortably from home. This shift will create numerous opportunities for the establishment of small businesses and freelancers in all of the many digital fields. Popularly called “gig-workers”, this independent workforce will expand profusely in numbers in the future as the world becomes ever more technology based. Locally there is also a huge need for individuals or businesses to assist the elderly in improving their digital skills. Trying to escape from a digital world in the future will be trying to escape from reality. All levels of conducting business are currently undergoing a rapid change, the likes of which has never been seen before and this will just accelerate in the future. It is inevitable and for those that welcome it with open arms, the possibilities are limitless. For those reluctant to embrace it, a future of living on the fringes of society is the only likely prospect.