Local start-ups seeking funding from Malta Enterprise will soon be able to access pre-application support and mentoring from a University of Malta business incubator. 

The support will be made available thanks to a memorandum of understanding signed between Malta Enterprise and the University on Tuesday that sets out a new framework of support for start-ups and ensures support through its Centre for Entrepreneurship and Business Incubation. 

Successful applicants will be able to access mentoring and support from TAKEOFF, CEBI’s incubator facility, over a one-year period post-award.  

The MOU was signed by Malta Enterprise CEO Kurt Farrugia and University of Malta rector Alfred Vella and hailed by ministers Miriam Dalli and Justyne Caruana.  

Farrugia said the agreement would complement the agency’s web portal statinmalta.com, intended as a focal point for local and foreign start-ups in Malta. 

Vella said the mentorship offered to start-ups by TAKEOFF would serve as a support mechanism allowing entrepreneurs to align their business ideas to the knowledge, experience and research present on campus. 

CEBI director Russell Smith described the agreement as a “milestone in support for new business ventures in Malta.”
 
Further information and training material can be obtained from takeoff.org.mt. The initiative forms part of the EU-funded I-KNOW project.