Former Prime Minister and Maltese MEP Alfred Sant said that EU Strategies promoting sustainable finance for manufacturing should specifically also target small and medium industries (SMEs). SMEs should be considered as of now, as main participants in any future scheme to promote and run sustainable finance in Europe. Dr Sant, addressing a Conference on ‘How sustainable finance can drive manufacturing growth in Europe’ in Brussels, said that when designing “incentives” and “penalties” in order to create a framework for sustainable finance to thrive, it will be necessary to adopt a graduated approach.
“Any big bang scenario does not make sense. The “one-size-fits-all” approach should also be avoided because what would work for big or listed companies doesn’t necessarily work for SMEs. This is not made clear in my view in the road map that the European Commission has been pursuing.”

The Maltese MEP said many SMEs finance their growth and investment plans through bank loans, cash flow and suppliers’ credit. The experience with the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) has shown that European investment platforms can accommodate substructures that cater for manufacturing SMEs to promote new investment projects.

Dr Sant said incentives should be tailor-made for SMEs, through specific green platforms that provide support by way of cheaper long term finance backed by green bonds or similar instruments.

The Maltese MEP said business firms, among others, must begin to take into account future environmental damage as an operational concern of today. For this to happen, such damage must be converted into an ongoing current day cost that firms will have to internalise. Which is why public policy measures, at national or EU level, need to be applied. The ground is being laid for corrective action to be organized in a focused, step by step manner.

“However — I may be wrong but — the impression being given is that this focus is too concentrated on the bigger utilities and productive firms. A huge proportion of manufacturing output in Europe is turned out by small and medium size enterprises. Could it be that the strategy being followed is based on the assumption that measures which are geared towards sustainability in the bigger enterprises will ultimately percolate down to SMEs since many of the latter function as suppliers to the larger conglomerates? In my view, it would be a mistake to go down this path.” remarked the Maltese MEP.

This event, organised by the European Forum for Manufacturing, follows on the European Commission publication of the action plan on sustainable finance. Sustainable finance is anchored in a long-term ethical vision of financial investment. It seeks to reconcile economic performance with positive social and environmental impact, by funding companies that actively contribute to sustainable development.

Maltese Version – L-ISTRATEĠIJI TAL-UE GĦAL FINANZJAMENT SOSTENIBBLI GĦANDHOM IKUNU IMMIRATI SPEĊIFIKAMENT LEJN L-SMEs

Il-Kap tad-delegazzjoni Maltija Laburista tal-Parlament Ewropew Alfred Sant qal li l-istrateġiji tal-UE għal finanzjamenti sostenibbli tal-qasam tal-manifattura għandhom jimmiraw speċifikament lill-industriji żgħar u medji (SMEs). Fi Brussell Dr Sant kien qed jindirizza l-Konferenza ‘Kif finanzjamenti sostenibbli jistgħu jkabbru s-settur tal-manifattura fl-Ewropa’. Huwa qal li l-SMEs għandhom jitqiesu minn issa, bħala parteċipanti ewlenin fi kwalunkwe skema li tħajjar u tmexxi finanzjamenti sostenibbli fl-Ewropa.
Dr Sant saħaq dwar sistema gradwali ta’ ‘inċentivi’ u ‘penali’ għal ħolqien ta’ qafas tajjeb għal finanzjament.
“Sistema li tagħti xokk ma tagħmilx sens. Li tlibbes l-istess żarbun għal kulħadd ukoll għandu jkun evitat għax dak li jaħdem għal kumpaniji kbar mhux neċessarjament jaħdem għal SMEs. Dan il-punt għalija mhux ċar fir-‘road map’ li qed tħaddan il-Kummissjoni Ewropea.”

Ħafna SMEs jiffinanzjaw il-pjanijiet tagħhom ta’ tkabbir u investiment permezz ta’ self mill-banek, likwidita` u kreditu mill-fornituri. L-Esperjenza tal-Fond Ewropew Għall-Investimenti Strateġiċi (EFSI) turina li pjattaformi ta’ investimenti Ewropej jistgħu jakkomodaw strutturi tal-SMEs fil-qasam tal-manifattura biex iħajru proġetti ta’ investimenti ġodda.

Dr Sant tkellem favur inċentivi magħmula apposta għall-SMEs, permezz ta’ pjattaformi ekoloġiċi speċifiċi li jipprovdu appoġġ b’finanzjament megħjun minn bonds ekoloġiċi jew strumenti simili.

Dr Sant qal li n-negozji għandhom jibdew jikkunsidraw id-dannu fuq l-ambjent futur bħala tħassib operazzjonali ta’ issa. Biex dan iseħħ, dan id-dannu jrid jinqeleb fi spiża kurrenti li l-industriji jridu jinternalizzaw. Għalhekk miżuri politiċi pubbliċi jridu jkunu applikati fuq livell nazzjonali jew Ewropew. Qed tkun imwittija t-triq biex issir azzjoni korrettiva organizzata u iffokata, li ssir ftit ftit.

“Jaf ninsab żbaljat iżda l-impressjoni li qed nieħu hija li l-emfasi qed tingħata wisq lid-ditti l-kbar. Proporzjon enormi tal-manifattura fl-Ewropa ssir mill-intrapriżi żgħar u medji. Jista’ jkun li l-istrateġija li fuqha qed nimxu hija bbażata fuq il-premura li l-miżuri mmirati lejn is-sostenibilita` tal-industriji l-kbar fl-aħħar se jwasslu sal-SMEs għax ħafna SMEs jaħdmu billi jissupplixxu lil konglomerati l-kbar? Fil-fehma tiegħi, jekk nimxu f’din it-triq inkunu qed niżbaljaw.” qal Alfred Sant.

Id-dibattitu kien organizzat mill-Forum Ewropew għal Manifattura wara li ġie ppubblikat il-pjan ta’ azzjoni tal-Kummissjoni Ewropea dwar il-finanzjament sostenibbli. Il-finanzjament sostenibbli jimxi pari passu ma’ viżjoni etika dwar l-investimenti finanzjarji. L-għan huwa li jitqarrbu lejn xulxin il-prestazzjoni ekonomika flimkien ma’ impatt pożittiv soċjali u ambjentali, billi jkunu ffinanzjati kumpaniji li jikkontribwixxu b’mod attiv għall-iżvilupp sostenibbli.

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