LA VALLETTA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The new national Maltese airline KM Malta Airlines has been granted a licence to fly and operate its service next year. The license was issued from Malta’s Civil Aviation Directorate. The new airline, which will take over from the existing national carrier Air Malta, will fly its inaugural flight on March 31. The airline said, “The vision, ambition and mandate of KM Malta Airlines is to protect and enhance the connectivity of the Maltese Islands to Europe and beyond, to support the Islands’ continued economic development and to grow into a successful and sustainable airline”. It added, “KM Malta Airlines will adopt a key European destination focus, linking Malta with the main capital cities in western Europe, with the primary European airport hubs, and connecting with partner airlines”. The summer schedule will operate from March 31 to October 26. In summer, the new airline intends to serve 17 airports across 15 cities, operating 8,546 flights and offering 1,430,000 seats. It will perform 284 weekly flights, reaching an average aircraft utilisation of 12 hours eight minutes per unit day. The summer schedule includes: 82 weekly flights between Malta and Italy, 48 weekly flights between Malta and France, 44 weekly flights between Malta and the United Kingdom and 40 weekly flights between Malta and Germany. The booking system will be open next Monday. The airline said that, according to plan, it has also launched its recruitment programme and will be seeking to recruit some 375 employees with the first call being made for captains and first officers. It will operate a young single-type aircraft fleet of eight Airbus 320NEOs, in a two-class configuration with a flexible business class cabin averaging 168 total saleable seats with up to 36 business class seats.

Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma

Source: medNews

DUBAI (ITALPRESS/MNA) – At COP28, a year after launching its “INSIEME 2025” Business Plan, SACE unveils its new ESG Strategy. This innovative approach is bound to revolutionize the Italian insurance-financial group’s business model, aligning it with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The primary goal of this strategy is to contribute to the community well-being and overall prosperity.
In front of an audience of more than 100 influential leaders from the GCC region, SACE presented its transformative strategy. This initiative will bring a substantial evolution in the company’s operational and business models. It integrates environmental, social, and governance criteria into every decision-making process and is underpinned by a scientific impact measurement system. Following the presentation, SACE also hosted a round table involving companies, financial institutions, and other stakeholders to explore solutions supporting this ESG evolution.
Accelerating companies’ transition represents the primary pillar of SACE’s Strategy, focusing on key sectors like renewable energy, circular economy, electric vehicles, and shared mobility. Particularly, it emphasizes SMEs, fostering a dedicated ecosystem for their development. The second pillar – becoming a “ESG Excellence Company” ensures the alignment of internal daily activities with ESG goals through initiatives reducing environmental impact, cultivating a sustainable supply chain, and nurturing sustainable leadership within SACE.
This strategy will be accompanied by an implementing Road Map, which will guide SACE in its evolution path by providing a clear and tangible direction to achieve ESG objectives. It will not only guide SACE during the Business Plan period (2024-2025) but also sets ambitious goals extending into 2030 and beyond.
“We are proud to unveil our ESG Strategy, a culmination of a year’s dedicated effort, especially on the grand stage of COP28 in the Gulf, a pivotal region influencing global energy balances and sustainability challenges,” stated Alessandra Ricci, CEO of SACE. “This Road Map is a collaborative endeavor involving all SACE stakeholders and our team. Together, we aim to amplify the impact of this transformative evolution”.
“This strategy embodies the dedication and passion of the SACE People seeking to embrace a new paradigm in their approach towards the world. Through our new ESG Strategy, the SACE Group embraces the challenges of sustainable development in an increasingly interconnected world, acknowledging that financial choices hold social and environmental repercussions, which, in turn, can have significant financial implications. Therefore, the decisions of a few can profoundly affect the well-being of many”, stated Michele De Capitani, Chief Financial & Sustainability Officer of SACE. “SACE’s commitment is dedicated to overseeing, monitoring, and influencing these interdependencies, not just for the benefit of shareholders but also for an expanding audience of stakeholders, encompassing the communities in which we operate”.

– Photo Sace press office –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

PALERMO (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Two liver transplants on two Maltese patients were performed within a few hours in Palermo, at the Mediterranean Transplant Institute. Ismett is an excellent facility with almost twenty years of experience to treat patients from abroad.

“This success is also thanks to an agreement signed in 2011 between the Italian and Maltese authorities,” said Maurizio Di Fresco, Ismett International Patients Manager, adding, “the agreement offers benefits for both Maltese patients who can receive medical treatment at ISMETT that is not available in Malta, and for Italian patients. In fact, Malta sends to Italy the organs that are not used when a donor is identified”.

Allan Vassallo and Carmen Abela describe their experience at Ismett. “I am very happy with the experience I had, doctors and nurses were very kind”, explained Allan Vassallo, adding, “everything went great. All the hospital staff did their best to take care of me. I felt at home, like at Mater Dei in Malta, where the medical staff gives their all. Compared to before, I feel much better now.”

Carmen Abela described her experience at Ismett as fabulous. “When I was in Malta I was given a double option on where to get the transplant: United Kingdom or Palermo. I chose Sicily because I thought I would feel more comfortable with the Italians. It was an exceptional experience, I was struck by the age of the healthcare staff as they are all very young. I noticed that everyone is up to date with medical developments. I am very happy to have made the right choice and chose Palermo for my medical treatment”.

– Photo Italpress –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela stressed the need to not only disrupt activities of human traffickers, but to collectively strive for traffickers to be brought to justice in a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. Robert Abela added Malta is focused on preventing arrivals and fighting human trafficking. During the discussions, Abela also showed support for dialogue and assistance to other countries in the Mediterranean such as Libya and Tunisia. Abela said Malta will continue to advocate for peace in the UN. “The fact that our country hosted the Ukraine Peace Formula, a high-level international meeting to seek peace in Ukraine, and the resolution adopted by Malta at the Security Council, continue to demonstrate Maltàs commitment to peace in different regions,” the PM said. The Maltese PM said there will continue to be solid connectivity with a national air route that will start operating from the coming March.
Both leaders also spoke about the energy sector and environmental sustainability, with PM Abela adding, “Malta is doing to make the Mediterranean a center of clean energy”. Germany is Maltàs largest commercial partner.

foto: DOI

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

BRUSSELS (BELGIUM) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The signing ceremony of the Grant Agreement for the Elmed electricity interconnection project that will connect Europe and North Africa took place in Brussels, an agreement concerning a project that will be built by Terna, the company that manages the Italian electricity transmission network, and Steg, the Tunisian electricity and gas company.
Kadri Simson, European Commissioner for Energy, Giuseppina Di Foggia, CEO and General Director of Terna, and Fayçel Tarifa, President and General Director of Steg, signed the agreement, ratified last August, and will financing an allocation of 307 million euros by the European Commission, intended for the submarine connection between Italy and Tunisia.

The funds from the EU funding program “Connecting Europe Facility”, intended for the development of key projects for the strengthening of community energy infrastructure, have been allocated for the first time in history to a project between a Member State and a state outside the EU.

“Elmed, the electricity connection that will unite Italy and Tunisia, is exceptional in many respects. It is the first electricity infrastructure under the Connecting Europe Facility fund to receive funding for projects developed by a Member State and a third country. I want to congratulate the parties involved for demonstrating effective collaboration and I wish the project the best success”, said Kadri Simson. “Today’s agreement confirms Ternàs increasingly central role in contributing to the creation of a safe, reliable and resilient European electricity grid. We will also continue to collaborate with other institutions in the future, making both our unique and distinctive skills available and innovative and digitalised solutions”, declared Giuseppina Di Foggia. She added: “Elmed is a strategic infrastructure for Italy and Europe, one of the main initiatives as part of Ternàs Development Plan, and will contribute to increase and integrate renewable energy between the two continents, allowing the country and the EU to increase the level of energy independence”.

“The financing of 307 million euros, intended for a strategic project like Elmed, confirms the long-standing partnership between the Tunisian Government and the European Union in the energy sector, as well as the importance that this project was agreed to secure energy for the future, that will be sustainable and renewable. We are convinced that Elmed will contribute to achieving the goal of energy transition in Tunisia by 2030 and increasing the country’s energy independence. The interconnection, which will connect the Tunisian electricity grid to the Italian grid through a 600 MW submarine cable, also symbolizes the exceptional level of cooperation between the two continents and, in particular, in the Mediterranean, between Tunisia and Italy, and will open the horizon to numerous other projects in the region, thanks to the support of the European Union institutions”, said Fayçel Tarifa.

The electricity connection of approximately 220 km in length (of which approximately 200 km in submarine cable at a maximum depth of approximately 800 metres), 600 MW of power and a total of 850 million euros of investment will also contribute to the integration of the electricity markets and secure energy supply through the diversification of sources.

Elmed will make it possible to reduce climate-changing emissions, enabling the achievement of the objectives set at national and European level on energy and climate by the National Integrated Plan for Energy and Climate and by the Green New Deal. The PCI Energy Days bring together member countries, regulators, network operators and promoters of Projects of Common Interest – such as Elmed – to share successful experiences and upcoming challenges for the modernization and development of community energy infrastructures.

– Photo press office Terna –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

PALERMO (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Conservation of marine biodiversity and the value of artisanal fishing were at the center of the strategic work and participation of the local population carried out by the Interreg VA Italy – Malta AMPPA (Marine Protected Areas and Artisanal Fishing). The Project, launched in 2019 and carried out in partnership between Sicilian (Egadi and Ustica MPA and Regional Fisheries Department) and Maltese (the villages of Gharb and Ghajnsielem in Gozo) entities, has reached its final phases and the results were presented at the Giardini del Massimo in Palermo, in the presence of the participants who took part in the project and the authorities of the two countries.
AMPPA supports the need to preserve marine biodiversity with two other objectives: maintaining the productivity of ecosystems and contributing to the economic and social well-being of those who live in the territories involved. The MPA regulation also refers to the compliance to the rules and the dissemination of information campaigns in order to manage fishing activities and safeguard the environmental heritage, as well as the setting up of four environmental information centers (three physical, in Favignana, Ustica and Ghajnsielem, and one virtual).
The local populations have been involved in various steps: first and foremost on the environmental awareness and education campaigns to encourage the development of environmental awareness among the community including locals and tourists, and the operators themselves like the fishermen and businesses operating in the tourism industry within the protected areas.
There were two ways for raising awareness: the first was the establishment of information days (30 were organized during the project) with spaces for debate and the second was the dissemination of communication campaigns on social networks to further broaden the knowledge on AMPPA. Also of great importance were the various workshops and educational courses, aimed at more than a thousand students from different territories (Favignana, Ustica, Marsala, Palermo, Ghajnsielem) in both primary and secondary schools. In addition to children, the project also involved families and a series of training courses for teachers.
“The objectives we set were ambitious”, underlined Salvatore Livreri Console, Director of the Egadi Islands AMP and project leader, adding “the world of fishing has accelerated its transformation in recent decades and the conservation of the sea has also been addressed with more urgency: our mission was to develop a series of good training and experimental practices to reconcile the needs of conservation and artisanal fishing. Involving two countries; Italy and Malta, was ideal for developing common management strategies”.
AMPPA was coordinated by engineer Giovanni Borsellino, who spoke about its development and future prospects: “The project process was very troubled between Covid and other difficulties, but we managed to bring it to completion: the involvement of both the Italian and Maltese Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, as well as the entity that manages the MPAs in Malta. We are already initiating contacts with other marine protected areas at European level, to jointly develop cooperation programs that aim to enhance the nature and the environment of the sites”.
Among the partners of the project there was also the Region, supporting the Mediterranean Fisheries Department. Angelo La Pillo underlined how “having raised the importance of this mission makes us focus on the future: the areas under protection will be expanded and we will evolve the current legislation in this sense. Furthermore, helping this development with European funds will be important, but we must not leave anyone behind: greater involvement of fishing companies is needed”.
Davide Bruno, director of the AMP Ustica, highlighted the impact that the dissemination of these practices has had on the territory and the role that the new environmental information center will have: “For the first time in Ustica a collaborative relationship is being developed with the fisheries workers: there is an awareness that the sea does not belong to the State or the European Union, but belongs to them. The environmental information center is the place designated for scientific dissemination through cutting-edge technological tools: training must start with the new generations, to instill in them respect for the environment and sustainable development”.
Kevin Cauchi, mayor of Ghajnsielem, expressed satisfaction for the results achieved and for the awareness raised with the involvement of people of all ages: “Many people didn’t even know about the existence of the marine protected area in our territory, we managed to raise awareness and the importance of environmental protection and traditions linked to the fishing sector among young people, adults and the elderly”.

– Photo AMPPA –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The World Bank said the Maltese government had to start phasing out the energy subsidies, saying price hikes on the global market were no longer temporary.
In its annual review on Malta, the World Bank added it wanted the Maltese government to prepare an “exit strategy” from the generous energy subsidy policy, to contain a larger deficit and enhance incentives for energy conservation, while protecting vulnerable populations.
It also said suppressing the price does not help incentivise energy conservation or green transition. “The sheer size of the subsidies limits fiscal space in reallocating resources to productivity-enhancing reforms while consolidating the fiscal position,” it said of the multi-million spend in subsidised energy and fuel costs.
The International Monetary Fund also said that to implement its 2021 Low Carbon Development Strategy, consumers had to be able to appreciate the cost of market energy prices to change consumption behaviours.
In its 2023 concluding statement on Malta, the IMF remarked, Malta has registered an impressive recovery from the pandemic, demonstrating substantial resilience to shocks resulting from Russiàs invasion of Ukraine.
Malta was described as an “economy at its full potential” with strong domestic demand, a tight labour market and rising prices.
The IMF had praise for Maltàs budgetary grants to vulnerable groups and pensioners, tighter tax collection system, as well as new resources in the fight against money laundering.
But it warned of flagging productivity and looming structural capacity constraints, calling for a refocused development strategy.
These included labour force gaps and new skills, immigration policies that ensure the right supply of skills to meet demand, and better roads, housing, education, and health services. It even called for an update of Maltàs planning policies.
Maltàs real growth in 2024 could be 3.5%, among the highest growth rates in Europe, with record low unemployment levels, but with inflation expected to remain anove 2% till late 2025. Fiscal deficits in Malta will see a small decling to 4.5% in 2024, with energy subsidies tagged at 1.75% of GDP – 40% of gross domestic product.

– foto: Agenzia Fotogramma –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Tunisian security units dismantled a network involved in migrant smuggling. This was confirmed in a statement issued by the Tunisian National Guard.
“Security units in central Tunisiàs Sidi Bouzid Province managed to dismantle a criminal network active in the smuggling of migrants of different African nationalities,” adding “this network transports these people to the southeastern province of Sfax for illegal immigration attempts toward Italy.”
The crackdown came against the backdrop of Sfax’s coasts becoming a significant departure point for illegal migrants attempting to reach the Italian island of Lampedusa.
Situated 80 km from the Tunisian coastline, the island of Lampedusa is often the first stop chosen by migrants for their sea voyage toward Italy.

– Foto: Agenzia Fotogramma –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese government is proposing discussions to ban cigarette sales to people born after a certain date, effectively creating the first smoke-free generation. The measure was proposed in a public consultation document issued by the Social Policy and Children’s Rights Ministry. It is among 198 measures proposed as part of the government’s vision to improve child well-being for the next six years. The document does not go into further detail about the proposal. If it enters into force, the ban would essentially begin the eradication of tobacco smoking. However, the doctors’ association said that a proposed ban on tobacco and banning cigarettes for people born after a certain year, only makes sense if the government also plans to ban cannabis smoking. “We have a government actively promoting cannabis and this is extremely contradictory,” said Martin Balzan, a respiratory physician who heads the Malta Medical Association. The UK government will introduce a “historic” new law that will ban cigarette sales to those born on or after January 1, 2009. It described the move as “the most significant public health intervention in a generation, saving tens of thousands of lives and saving the National Health Service billions of pounds”. The UK followed in New Zealand’s decision, which introduced a very similar anti-smoking bill last year – as part of the government’s wider effort to make the country smoke free by 2025.
– Photo: Agenzia Fotogramma –
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews