Factsheet for measure
MT-2020-45/1171
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Updated
– measures in Malta
Malta Enterprise administers business re-engineering consultancy
Background information
COVID-19 had a marked negative financial impact on several sectors in Malta. By means of a tripartite agreement, a package of measures to save jobs and organisations was agreed and announced by the Government on 24 March 2020. Amongst the measures in this package, wage subsidies were offered to sectors which were worst hit. During a 'mini budget' announced on the 8 June 2020, which aimed to regenerate Malta's economy, government announced another package of measures. Amongst the new measures announced, was a business re-engineering consultancy administered by the Malta Enterprise.
Content of measure
Whilst announced in June, details of this measure remain limited (September 2020).
In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, government acknowledged that organisations will have to modify the way that they operate. Via the Malta Enterprise, Government first offered a measure which subsidised the purchase of technological equipment for the purpose of fostering teleworking. This measure has now ended. This new measure acknowledged that some organisations, especially micro and small enterprises might require assistance in drafting new business plans and in exploring technological options. In view of this, Malta Enterprise is providing a maximum of €5,000 per business to be used to undertake reengineering exercises with approved companies. A total budget of €2.5 million has been allocated to this measure. It is envisaged that the measure will aid in fostering a digital economy.
Updates
The following updates to this measure have been made after it came into effect.
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01 November 2021
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A list of consultants who can contribute to the advisory stage of the 'Change to Grow' scheme has been compiled by the Malta Chamber and can be accessed through the Malta Enterprise's website. The list is being regularly updated. Applicants are not required to use this list.
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13 July 2021
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Further details of the Change to Grow scheme were released. A cash grant of €10,000 is provided as a 75% reimbursement for eligible costs. Costs of up to €5,000 (and up to €120 per hour excluding VAT) can be claimed during the advisory stage for services that would lead to strategic changes in an organisation's operations. Examples include for digitalisation of business processes, performance and process improvements, environmental performance and sustainability, and improvement in quality, marketing and human resources, amongst others.
A further €5,000 can be claimed for the implementation stage. Costs must be pre-approved and have a value of at least €500 to be eligible and may include several aspects such as the purchase of tangible assets and software, one-off services or up to three months of service providers' tasks, and additional advisory support.
Applications can be received up to 31 October 2022.
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27 April 2021
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Changes to this scheme, now termed 'Change to Grow' were announced by the Prime Minister, Robert Abela. Primarily, the scheme was announced to now be open to self-employed and micro organisations. Furthermore, the cap on support provided by this scheme was doubled from €5,000 to €10,000 per project.
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03 November 2020
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Whilst previously announced, the actual details of the scheme were published by the Malta Enterprise at the beginning of November 2020.
It was announced that the aid from this scheme shall be awarded to companies employing between 10 - 250 people and will be received in the form of a cash grant covering 50% of the costs incurred up to a maximum grant of €5,000 per advisory service per undertaking. Beneficiaries may only be supported once through this measure during any 18-month period. This incentive shall be available until the 31 December 2023.
The Malta Enterprise signed an agreement with The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry to compile a recommended list of service providers who can as consultants for the Business Re-Engineering & Transformation Scheme. Organisations that opt for a service provider who are found on the recommended list will have their application fast tracked as the due diligence process of the Service provider would have been carried out by the Chamber.
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Use of measure
No information is available.
Target groups
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Workers
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Businesses
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Citizens
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Does not apply to workers
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Applies to all businesses
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Does not apply to citizens
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Actors and funding
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Actors
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Funding
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National government
Public support service providers
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National funds
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Social partners
Social partners' role in
designing the measure
and form of involvement:
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Trade unions
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Employers' organisations
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Role
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Consulted
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Consulted
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Form
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Direct consultation outside a formal body
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Direct consultation outside a formal body
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Social partners' role in the
implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:
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Only employers' organisations
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Main level of involvement: Unknown
Involvement
By means of a tripartite agreement, a package of measures to save jobs and organisations was agreed on 24 March 2020. This was the third but most significant package of measures announced by the Government. Following this agreement, social partners remained in direct contact with the government highlighting their proposals of what was felt was still necessary to save the Maltese economy and jobs. In view of this, on 8 June 2020, the government announced a 'mini budget' to help the Maltese economy to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Essentially, this was the fourth package of measures announced by the government. The current measure formed part of this package.
The Malta Chamber, an employers' association, contributed to the 'Change to Grow' scheme by means of providing a list of consultants who can be used for the advisory stage of the scheme. Applicants are not obliged to use consultants from this list.
Views and reactions
The fourth package of measures, of which the current measure formed part of, received public support from an array of social partners. Those positive and vocal about it were primarily business associations, including the Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber of SMEs, the Malta Employers' Association, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association (MHRA), the Malta Developers Association (MDA) and the Association of Catering Establishments.
Changes to this scheme announced in April 2021 were hailed by the Malta Chamber, an Employers' Association, where it was pointed out that this organisation championed this scheme since its inception. The updates to this measure were announced during a conference where other measures were also announced. Reacting to this package of measures, the Malta Chamber of SMEs was quoted as stating that "The schemes announced today are the result of intense consultations and numerous meetings with different sectors to assess the COVID-19 impact and their specific needs." (Times of Malta, 2021)
Sources
