Malta is the worst country in Europe at absorbing EU funds, PN MEP candidates Peter Agius and Miriana Calleja Testaferrata de Noto said on Monday, pointing to an EU report issued last month.

The report, comparing absorption rates of EU’s 2013-2017 cohesion funds across different countries, found that Malta had absorbed 85% of its cohesion funds by the end of 2023 (excluding funds coming from the EU’s Covid recovery scheme REACT-EU).

That is a lower rate than any other country in the EU and well below the EU average of 94%, with several countries having absorbed all of the funds at their disposal.

Malta’s poor showing reflects how “despite the efforts of the many serious and dedicated professionals across Malta’s workforce, they are not being given enough government support,” Agius said.

As a result, he added, a good amount of Malta’s EU funds have not yet been spent.

Agius argued that the report highlights the administrative hurdles that Malta faces to absorb these funds, saying that many of them result from the lack of skills within entities responsible for administering EU funds.

The report says that  Malta’s small labour market makes it difficult to find “adequate staff with adequate skills”, bringing about “constraints in administrative capacity”.

It also says that authorities point to “the rigidity of EU rules” as an obstacle to absorbing EU funds.

“This is why we need to use our seat at the table better,” Agius said, arguing that PN MEP candidates are better placed to improve Malta’s lot.

EU funds are crucial to the wellbeing of youths, Miriana Calleja Testaferrata de Noto said, “so if they are used well, it will be to their benefit”.

She argued that Malta needs to invest in its civil service and offer workers better long-term prospects to avoid the brain drain and loss of skills that is bringing about Malta’s poor absorption rate.