It is the hard-working people of our nation who have helped build our successful economy – and not just our decision makers. This is a fact often overlooked.

It is fair to say that Malta’s economy has performed relatively well in recent years. It is less fair to attribute this success solely to the actions of decision takers and policymakers.

In fact, the Maltese economy would not be strong at all if this were the case, as this would mean that its stability is reliant on the correct decisions of a select few.

It is also less than fair to say that our economic success story thus far is a matter of happenstance – or ‘right place, right time’, as some critics often say.

While politics does involve a degree of circumstance, coupled with strategic decisions, a sound and sustainable economy that would withstand shocks and face up to significant, and sometimes unexpected, challenges, requires far more than this.

The reality is that our hard-working country has managed to turn the economy’s weaknesses into strengths, its threats into opportunities.

We are clearly a proactive society and this cannot be understated. There is no magical economic formula that simply functions on its own.

Our society was able to grasp opportunities that helped us grow, and in turn enhanced our competitiveness.

A decade ago, our European counterparts, together with the global economy, were going through a recession. But the Maltese economy proved to be resilient to the very serious economic shocks back then. Soon after, growth in the Maltese economy was restored.

Financial success alone does not guarantee the well-being of a nation

Surely enough, it eventually boomed and we have seen a significant increase in disposable income, employment, and consistent fiscal surpluses. These factors have put Malta at the forefront of European rankings in economic performance.

Malta’s economic development has come so far. So what’s next?

One of the most dangerous pitfalls we can end up slipping into is assuming that gross domestic product alone is the sole criterion of measuring a country’s strength and success.

This is because financial success alone does not guarantee the well-being ofa nation.

Nobel prize winner and economist Joseph Stiglitz took due note of this fact, as he argued that the measurement of economic success solely based on GDP fails to capture the impact of significant factors such as climate change, inequality, and other social phenomena shaping the well-being of our societies.

In fact, there is a growing trend among developed countries to set specific budgets for national well-being. Case in point are New Zealand, Iceland, and Scotland. Malta should follow suit.

Gross national well-being looks at socio-economic elements – promoting justice and good governance, environmental sustainable practices, enhancing incomes for vulnerable groups, upgrading investment in education with specific focus on the issue of early school leaving, enhancing skills and opportunities, sustaining public health and psychological well-being, promoting work-life balance, and reducing inequality and eradicating absolute poverty.

The ultimate aim of these elements combined together is to make Malta a great place to live in, and to ensure that everyone is benefitting from the economic growth in their daily lives.

To tackle this, the first step is to devise a vision and strategy, to develop measures  specifically tailored to enhance the gross national well-being for Malta. A budget has to be allocated in line with the requirements of the strategy.

Most importantly key performance indicators need to be designed and implemented in line with the outlined measures, so that government will be able to track and take action with regards to any improvements or regress of society’s gross national well-being.

In this sense, we will also shift our thinking to one of an economic ecosystem of sorts. Society, government, enterprise, and environment are all intrinsically linked and the economy functions in this manner.

Government and specifically, the Economy Ministry, should see that all four grow in synergy.

All of society will stand to benefit from this new economic exercise. Evidence has consistently shown that better well-being leads to a happier society. This, in turn, has positive implications on productivity and the quality of life in general. 

Malta has been through political turmoil over the past month which has disturbed society’s serenity and confidence in the sustainability of our past successes. 

Now, more than ever, this economic exercise is needed to pave the path forward, restore Malta’s image with the international community, and continue to attract investment and sustain growth.

Aaron Farrugia is Parliamentary Secretary for EU Funds & Social Dialogue.