Site identified for Gozo industrial park

Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono yesterday referred to plans by Maltapost to transfer Gozitan workers to Malta and said the Gozo Ministry was holding talks so that a favourable solution could be reached in the interests of those workers.

She also told parliament during the budget debate on the Gozo ministry that a site for the development of an industrial zone for the small self-employed had been identified.

Mr Carmelo Borg (MLP), the first speaker in yesterday's debate, said this had been one of the worst years for Gozo since the 1960s. That was when 12 factories at Xewkija industrial estate used to employ some 2,000 people with the ensuing multiplier effect of funds generated from exports. The handful of factories still extant, some of which were in dire straits, now employed about 700 people.

The tourism sector was a cause for concern. The meagre summer profits registered by Gozitan hotels were taken up in winter wages and maintenance. Industry leaders said the main culprits were the lack of proper advertising by the government overseas, as well as the inadequate inter-island transport facilities.

The privatisation of HSBC and Posta Ltd had translated into a degraded service for the consumer and job insecurity for employees.

The kind of projects currently underway in Gozo did not bode well. The planned government office centre in Victoria had not even produced a development application. About Lm20,000 had been spent in just a few trial "holes" for the project.

The place hosting the law courts was totally inadequate. This was something that could be incorporated into the office centre project.

Mr Borg said it hurt to read, in official literature, that the sewage purification and waste management projects were now necessary because of Malta's imminent membership of the European Union. Now, after several years, there was a lot of haste. The sites chosen for the two projects, in eastern Gozo, were very sensitive.

The sewage purification plant site was close to Chambray, Mgarr ix-Xini and Ta' Cenc while the waste management project site was close to Ghajnsielem and the Silver Jubilee Ground. There were other possible sites for the two projects that were not as sensitive. Indeed, domestic waste did not have to be treated in Gozo but could be sent directly to Malta immediately after collection.

The Mgarr harbour project was beset by huge problems, including its small size for the needs of Gozo. Huge amounts of funds were set to be spent on partial solutions that would only have to be revisited.

Gozo was not getting anything out of cruise liner business in Malta but this could yet happen with some good planning, Mr Borg said.

Labour MP Anton Refalo complained that workers were being dismissed by MP Clothing and Lloyds which together made up more than half the workforce at the Xemxija industrial estate employing together 454 workers. There were also rumours that MDP was closing down and its work was being transferred to Malta. The minister's reply when asked about this had been that the relevant action would be taken if and when the issue arose. This, Dr Refalo said, was not enough. Maltapost too wanted to reduce its workforce in Gozo.

The budget offered no new hope to Gozitan children and adolescents who were falling behind in the education system. Results obtained by Gozitans in Junior Lyceum entrance examinations were the worst among all schools in the country.

Schools in Gozo were being run without heads or assistant heads. What was the education council within the Gozo Ministry doing? What was the Foundation for Tomorrow's Schools doing for Gozo?

Turning to Gozo Channel, he asked what had become of the hovermarine service.

On the self-employed, Dr Refalo said Labour had drawn up a project to set up workshops, but, four years on, nothing had happened.

The tourism sector had also been abandoned except for a website and outings to the countryside.

A ministry document on business promotion said that Gozo was not attracting a reasonable volume of new investment. What was the ministry doing about this?

Touching briefly on harbour services, Dr Refalo said the project had fallen behind and major problems had been identified.

He said the budget allocation for Gozo showed cuts in every sector, including factory development, assistance to farmers and fishermen, restoration of historic sites, works on the Gozo Hospital, environment protection and waste management.

Opposition leader Alfred Sant accused the government of indifference and said a Labour government would instil enthusiasm and initiative in Gozo affairs with the aim of generating economic activity while preserving Gozo's characteristics.

A Labour government would, if necessary, introduce special incentives to encourage the setting up of industry in Gozo and create jobs for the Gozitans in Gozo.

A new impetus would be given to the promotion of tourism and the provision of facilities so that tourists would stay there for far longer than day trips.

A new Labour government would be committed to the development of a yacht marina, a casino and a golf course in Gozo without going in for stupid adventures of speculative development.

A new Labour government would also be committed to giving Gozitan agriculture a new lease of life by helping farmers become more efficient.

Dr Sant said it was shameful that the government had not set up industrial sites for the small self-employed. Why had the project planned by Labour for Ta' Xhajma been shelved?

Something practical had to be done regarding the landfill at Qortin. Action had to be taken across the board for environmental problems to be faced and not ignored.

EU membership, Dr Sant added, was a threat to Gozitan farmers and industry as this was based on a single market which did not apply for Gozo.

Mr Frederick Azzopardi (PN) said opposition spokesmen might have given the impression that nothing was being done in Gozo. But it was enough to look at the infrastructural projects at Cirkewwa and Mgarr and at Gozo Channel's new fleet of ships.

The Gozo Tourism Association deserved recognition for its efforts to market Gozo especially in the winter months.

Between Lm4 million and Lm5 million, most of them coming from the EU, would be spent on sewage purification and waste management. The funds would have had to be forked out by the Maltese people had the government given the EU the cold shoulder.

Mr Azzopardi congratulated the ministry for Gozo on the sterling work done on Gozitan schools and the hospital.

Mr Victor Galea Pace (PN) said that over the past four years the opposition had engaged in destructive criticism that showed no real love for the country. On the other hand, the Nationalist administration had shown careful planning to get Malta out of its financial straits while ensuring stability.

Among the new and ongoing projects for Gozo's progress were Gozo Channel's new fleet, new roads and maintenance of arterial roads as well as school modernisation.

Mr Galea Pace said that diving facilities in Gozo could be developed further.

Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono said that capital expenditure by her ministry had been the biggest ever in the past four years, reaching Lm7.4 million. The annual average was Lm1.8 million compared to the annual average of Lm1.4 million under the Labour government.

In 2003 the government would spend Lm2.8 million, double what Labour had spent four years ago. A sum of Lm525,000 was being given to Gozo by the EU in pre-accession funds for the sewage treatment plant.

A further Lm4 million had been allocated for the new ferries and for improvements to the harbours at Mgarr and Cirkewwa.

She recalled that over the past year Enemalta had laid a new cable between the two islands and the Water Services Corporation had embarked on a Lm350,000 project to improve the quality of tap water in Gozo.

Reacting to criticism on the planned waste transfer station, Mrs Debono said waste generated in Gozo would be transferred to Malta in sealed containers in the cleanest environmental manner. This would mean that the landfill at Qortin would be closed without being replaced by another landfill elsewhere.

The site where the transfer station would be set up was currently abandoned and it would be rehabilitated in an environmentally clean and acceptable way.

She insisted that Gozo stood to benefit from EU membership. It would be recognised as a region and would be eligible for special funds if the level of development fell behind Malta's.

The minister highlighted work done by her ministry on the roads. Among the projects currently in hand was the widening and rebuilding the road leading to Ta' Pinu and the Xewkija-Qala road.

Mrs Debono said a number of Gozitan farmers had been given the opportunity to go to Germany on an exchange visit to explore new ideas.

Farmers and fishermen were given financial help to neutralise the additional expenses they had in transferring their products between the two islands.

The past year had seen a 39 per cent increase in the sale of agricultural products from the vegetable market in Gozo.

Last year was the best year for tourism in Gozo. A lot of hard work went into promotional activities and new initiatives such as the country walks. The number of tourists staying in hotels in Gozo had risen by 3,000 between January and September this year compared to the same period in 1998. The number of visits to Gozo had risen by 72 per cent.

The Ministry of Gozo had spent a record Lm800,000 on improving the environment of the schools in Gozo and providing them with the equipment they needed, including new science and computer labs at Sir M.A. Refalo school.

Another significant development in Gozo was the opening of a branch of MCAST in Gozo so that more vocational courses could be offered there.

The ministry was also spending more than Lm446,000 on an extensive rehabilitation of the general hospital which had transformed some wards like day from night. Two operating theatres had also been updated with new equipment.

Near the end of her speech, Mrs Debono said that over the past four years bank deposits in Gozo had increased by Lm44.3 million while the number of bank accounts increased by 13,300. The average monthly increase in bank deposits was Lm250,000 more when compared to the time of the Labour government.

A total of 446 private sector jobs had been created in the same period and the number of self-employed increased by 133.

Reacting to Dr Sant's remarks, Mrs Debono said her ministry had continued its efforts so that more Gozitans would be transferred to work in Gozo. A new group of clerks had just started training ahead of being transferred to Gozo.