Gozo in Europe : what future?

Abstract

Next year, the citizens of the Maltese Islands will be called upon to decide their future in the European Union by way of a referendum on whether or not Malta should be annexed to the E.U. as full member. This presentation will deal with the potential impact of an eventual Maltese accession to the E. U. on the island region of Gozo. For much too long has the island of Gozo received lip-service to its justified call for a tailor-made plan of action which addresses our island region's specific weaknesses and which exhibits the required strategic vision to build upon the island's inherent strengths. Furthermore, in the context of the present administration's efforts to finalise its work on a National Plan for the Adoption of the Acquis, the subject matter of this paper is indeed of topical and timely significance for the Gozitan community. In this paper I will argue that: (i) Malta's eventual accession to the European Union as a full member will restrict Malta's ability to foster an adequately differentiated economic base where business can thrive by successfully targeting and exploiting niche markets. This will directly undermine the ability of Gozo-based manufacturing activity to compete both in the international market and in the increasingly competitive domestic market. (ii) Even if, contrary to Malta Labour Party's insistence, the present administration presses on with its drive to achieve full accession to the E.U., a more determined effort than that evident so far is necessary to cater for Gozo's distinct needs. An eventual recognition by the European Union that Malta and Gozo stand on an equal footing as one region does not only take away from Gozo what is due to it by right, but it can also reasonably be expected to limit the discretion exercised liberally so far by legislators in the Maltese Islands to grant preferential treatment to Gozo-based businesses. Such preferential treatment has not only reduced transportation costs for a host of Gozo-based entrepreneurial activities, but it has also facilitated the execution of critical managerial functions by Gozo-based industrial concerns. Putting Malta and Gozo on the same footing will gradually but consistently shift manufacturing and services-oriented activities to the mainland leaving behind an underdeveloped Gozitan economy, overly-dependent upon central government expenditure.