Parking, sports facilities and data – new University rector outlines plan
Frank Bezzina says predecessor had kick-started a plan to refurbish the football ground and running track
An underground car park, a refurbished football ground and running track, and a university-wide study to identify per-student expenditure are all part of Frank Bezzina's plan for his tenure as university rector.
Bezzina was speaking about his plans on Andrew Azzopardi’s radio show on Saturday morning, two days after he was confirmed as the University of Malta’s next rector.
Among others, he plans on improving the university’s sports programme.
"When I'm abroad people are impressed by the wide variety of courses we offer, but then they ask about our sports facilities...” Bezzina said.
He said that his predecessor, Alfred Vella, had kick-started a plan to refurbish the football ground and running track.
“However, we do not only want to improve the ground, but also build a two-storey underground car park underneath it,” he said.
The car park will be available free of charge to students and also open to residents of the area. Making the space available for residents will mean the university can access funds from the Planning Authority, he said.
Speaking about the university’s finances, Bezzina said that the university generates some €7 million from the 1,800 international (non-EU) students enrolled.
He said that the money roped in for research was also increasing every year, adding that the university received €18 million for that purpose last year.
Bezzina added that the university needed more long-term planning.
One way to attain this was to invest the money brought in for research and use the interest generated for such funds while retaining the principal as a reserve fund.
He said the university also has property that was currently not being used, while it was also renting out other buildings.
Bezzina also wished to carry out a study to determine how much money is spent on each student, depending on their course.
“This is not an exercise to slash one course or another but to know where our money is going. That would mean having more negotiating power because when the finance minister asks me where public money is going, I can tell him.”