Fondi oħra tal-UE jistgħu joħolqu proġetti ġodda għaż-żgħażagħ f’Għawdex

Għawdex jista’ jgawdi minn aktar fondi tal-Unjoni Ewropea li joħolqu proġetti u impjiegi ġodda għaż-żgħazagħ f’Għawdex u jeħtieġ sforzi akbar biex ninkoraġġixxu aktar fondi tal-Unjoni Ewropea għal attivita` ekonomika ġdida f’Għawdex. L-ewwel priorita` trid tkun li nenfasizzaw li l-politika Ewropea, meta tista’ tkun ta’ siwi għal Għawdex, trid taqbel mar-realtajiet Għawdxin meta tkun qed tiġi applikata l-politika tal-UE. Il-Kap tad-Delegazzjoni Laburista fil-Parlament Ewropew qal li se jkompli jinsisti fil-Parlament Ewropew u f’fora oħra li jrid jingħata trattament speċjali għall-isfidi ta’ Għawdex fil-politika tal-Unjoni Ewropea. ‘Se nkompli nagħmel dan fil-qasam tat-trasport, turiżmu, agrikoltura, industrija, artiġġjanat, industriji żgħar u medji, servizzi finanzjarji, appoġġ diġitali.’ Dr.Sant, li kien qed jindirizza l-Konferenza għas-soċjeta’ ċivili f’Għawdex ‘L-Aspirazzjonijiet tal-Għawdxin fl-Ewropa’ f’Ta’ Ċenċ, Għawdex qal li l-Gvern, permezz tal-Ministru ta’ Għawdex u s-Segretarjat Parlamentari responsabbli mill-fondi strutturali tal-UE diġa` qed jagħmel biċċa xogħol kbira f’dan ir-rigward.
Dr. Sant qal li Għawdex jeħtieġ irawwem it-talent żagħżugħ tiegħu u joħloq proġetti ġodda f’Għawdex. ‘Irridu nreġġgħu lura li ż-żgħażagħ ifittxu xogħol u jaħdmu Malta jew aktar ’il bogħod meta jispiċċaw l-istudji tagħhom. Dawn jeħtieġu impjiegi f’Għawdex. Jeħtieġu impjiegi vijabbli għalihom u għal oħrajn f’Għawdex. Għawdex għandu bżonn niċeċ ta’ attivitajiet li jinvolvu liż-żgħażagħ Għawdxin. Dan diġa` ġie propost fi proġett li jixraqlu kull suċċess. Tkun idea tajba jekk il-gvern jagħmel sforz żejjed fil-qasam tal-investiment biex jimmobilizza aktar fondi fi programmi oħra tal-UE, li jagħtu appoġġ lil proġetti ġodda.
‘Każ partikolari huwa l-programm INTERREG tal-Unjoni Ewropea li jagħti fondi lil proġetti fir-reġjuni periferali u gżejjer iżolati fl-Unjoni Ewropea. Dawn il-proġetti huma ko-finanzjati bejn ir-reġjuni u l-gżejjer u l-UE. Proġett tipiku jiswa madwar €3 miljun, 85% jitħallsu mill-UE u l-bqija mir-reġjuni permezz tal-gvernijiet ċentrali. Dawn il-proġetti jgħinu liż-żgħażagħ Għawdxin joħolqu proġetti ġodda f’Għawdex.’
Dr. Sant qal li jidher li għadna m’aħniex imħejjija biex nesplojtjaw il-possibilitajiet ta’ proġetti bħall-INTERREG. ‘Inwiegħed lill-Għawdxin li se nkomplu ninkoraġġixxi inizjattivi ġodda fil-Parlament Ewropew u f’oqsma oħra biex iż-żgħażagħ f’Għawdex joħolqu proġetti żgħar li joħolqu impjiegi ġodda f’Għawdex.’
Dr. Sant qal li minn dak li sema f’dan is-seminar jikkonferma r-realtajiet f’Għawdex. Minkejja l-progress kbir li sar fl-aħħar sentejn, Għawdex iħossu iżolat u jeħtieġ l-appoġġ fit-tul biex inaqqas id-differenzi ma’ Malta u ta’ reġjuni ċentrali oħra fl-Unjoni Ewropea. Gżejjer oħra u reġjuni periferali oħra fl-UE iħossuhom l-istess. ‘L-UE tista’ tkun ta’ għajnuna f’dan il-proċess? Il-verita` hi li matul is-snin, id-diverġenzi ekonomiċi fl-UE żdiedu, mhux naqsu, bejn l-aktar reġjuni żviluppati tal-UE u dawk l-anqas żviluppati. Dan huwa riżultat tal-politika tal-UE ta’ ‘one-size-fits-all’ tal-UE li mhux sensittiva għall-bżonnijiet tar-reġjuni fil-periferija tagħha, kbar u żgħar, temm jgħid Dr. Sant.

 

English Version – More Eu funds can ensure new job opportunities for gozitan youths in Gozo

Gozo can benefit from more EU funds which ensure new job opportunities for Gozitan youths in Gozo and greater efforts should be encouraged in mobilizing EU funds to create new economic activity in Gozo. The Head of the Labour Delegation at the European Parliament said he would continue to drum the point in the European Parliament and elsewhere that special treatment should be given to Gozo’s challenges when EU policies are being applied. ‘I will do this in the fields of transport, tourism, agriculture, industry and artisanal projects, small and medium industries, financial services, digital support. The first priority must be that of continuing to emphasize that European policies, where they can be of help to Gozo, must fit Gozitan realities when EU policies are being applied. Special treatment should be given to Gozo’s challenges.’ Dr. Alfred Sant, who was addressing a Seminar ‘Gozitans’ Aspirations in Europe’ at Ta’ Ċenċ Hotel, Sannat Gozo, said government, by means of the Gozo Ministry and of the parliamentary secretariat organizing EU structural funds in Malta, is already doing a splendid job in this regard.
Dr. Sant said Gozo crucially needs to harness its own young talent and endeavour to the task of creating new projects on the island. ‘We must reverse the flow of young people seeking to live and work in Malta and farther away, when they finish their schooling. They need to find jobs in Gozo. Better still, they need to create viable jobs for themselves and others in Gozo. Gozo needs to prospect niches of activities in which young Gozitans can start working on new projects in Gozo itself. To be sure, already this is being envisaged through the incubation unit that is being proposed for Gozo. May the project be a huge success. It would be a good idea if the government could make an extra effort in the investment field to mobilize even more funds, not necessarily a lot, to serve as counterparts in other programmes of the EU, which support new projects.’
‘A case in point is the EU’s INTERREG programme which funds projects that connect units in peripheral regions and isolated islands.’ said Dr. Sant. Such projects are cofinanced between the regions/islands networking together, and the EU. A typical project would cost less than 3 million euro, 85% of which would come from the EU, the rest from the regions involved, through their central governments. Such projects would serve to give exposure and jobs to Gozitan young people interested in creating new initiatives in Gozo.
Dr. Sant said it seems that we are still not equipped to exploit the possibilities offered by programmes such as INTERREG. ‘I make it as my promise here to take action at the level of the European Parliament and other fora, to encourage new initiatives in this area, with a view to creating a model by which young people in Gozo could set about starting small scale projects that provide new jobs in Gozo.’
Dr. Sant said that the accounts heard during the seminar confirm the reality of a Gozo which despite the great progress of the last two years, still feels isolated and needing long term support to reduce the disparity between its situation and that of Malta, as well as of the central regions of the EU. Other island and peripheral regions of the EU feel the same way.
The question is: can the EU be of help in this process? The truth is that over the years, economic divergences have risen, not dropped, between the better endowed regions of Europe and those which are less developed. Contributing to this has been the ‘one-size-fits-all approach’ of the EU, which has not been sensitive to the needs of peripheral regions, large or tiny.