ESIS Extension / Malta / IS Promotional Activities / Master Report

Among the most active ministries in the promotion of IS there is the Ministry for Justice and Local Councils, currently working on the networking of the 67 Local Councils in the Maltese Islands; the Ministry of Education and National Culture which is introducing computer and Internet access in schools; and the Ministry for Transport and Communications which is responsible for the Telecoms Regulator. The latter is involved the co-ordination of Malta's participation in the EUMEDIS initiative of the European Commission.

From the private sector, EAN Malta (http://www.eanmalta.org.mt) stands out in the promotion of IS. This Maltese representative of the Brussels-based European Article Numbering Association is actively promoting electronic commerce, automatic data capture (ADC) and electronic data interchange (EDI) as valuable tools for Malta's commercial and industrial sectors in the light of the globalisation of international trade.

EAN Malta is promoting an awareness programme about ADC and EDI in the Middle East and the Mediterranean; it publishes its own magazine called 'Vision' about the Maltese IS; it is the focal point for Malta for Mediterranean IT Nodes in the field of electronic commerce, and it is one of the members of the Malta Committee of the Information Society Forum which is promoting the EUMEDIS programme in Malta.

Among the other public entities which seem to take initiatives in the promotion of the IS are the Malta External Trade Corporation (METCO) (http://www.metco.com.mt) and the Institute for the Promotion of Small Enterprise (IPSE) (http://www.ipse.org.mt) . METCO has become a focal point in Malta for Mediterranean IT Nodes in the field of WWW and Multimedia Technologies, while IPSE has the same role but for technologies in business processes. Both public bodies host promotional IS events and are actively looking forward for the EUMEDIS initiative.

An interesting initiative from the University of Malta (http://www.um.edu.mt) is the Malta Internet Foundation (http://www.um.edu.mt/nic) , an attempt to unite Internet end users and content providers and promote the positive development of Internet in Malta. So far this is the major initiative from the educational sector, apart from the project to introduce Internet access in public schools, which is yet to be implemented.

One of the most important documents for the Maltese Government (http://www.magnet.mt) in the creation of the Information Society is the Information Systems Strategic Plan (ISSP). The first one was issued in 1990. The next one was completed and presented in October 1998, to be implemented in the period 1999-2001. The ISSP has the primary objective to establish a direction for further information systems investment within the Public Service for the above-mentioned period. Unfortunately this is not a public document.

Until September 1998 there was the National Commission for Information Technology (NCIT) (http://www.ncit.org.mt) which had the task, among other things, to promote the IS, promote the effective use of IT in Maltese organisations, promote the use of IT to enhance Government Information and Services, and act as an advisor to the Government and co-ordinate IS initiatives in Malta. However since the change in administration in September 1998 the NCIT has never met again and it's future is unknown.

The most important IS project being implemented in Malta is the creation of a value added digital network between the 67 Local Councils in the Maltese Islands, as first step towards the creation of the On-line Government. The Local Councils will provide a one-stop shop for various services from government departments.

The EUMEDIS initiative is indeed getting a lot of attention in Malta and a there is a concerted effort by various parties, including EAN, METCO, IPSE and the Ministry for Transport and Communications, to create awareness about its benefits to the local and regional IS. Interested parties are identifying potential partners locally and abroad.

The Malta Internet Foundation at the University of Malta launched the Malta Internet Exchange, a project to create a national Internet backbone between Malta's Internet Service and Content Providers to stimulate the creation and facilitate access to local Internet content.

EAN Malta has launched an on-line database of bar codes, bar coding standards and other information about bar-coding technologies. The searchable tool is available on an Internet website(http://www.ean.business-line.com/)

Challenge 2000 (http://www.challenge2000.magnet.mt) is a government-appointed task force aimed at the Y2K or 'Millennium Bug' problem. Its task is to create awareness about the consequences of the Y2K bug and urge Maltese companies to upgrade their systems and avoid potential problems at the turn of the year.

The Maltese Chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC) (http://www.isoc.org.mt) was set-up with the aim of promoting the development of Internet in Malta and raise awareness about the potential of the Internet as a medium for communication, entertainment, leisure, education, information and work. In its first weeks of existence it has published widely in the media to create awareness about the good use of Internet.

RADIANET is a network of both public organisations like the Malta Council for Science and Technology and private companies like IT hardware providers, training houses and Internet service providers to promote the use of ICT in the daily lives of persons with disabilities and special needs. This is one of the first initiatives involving ICT and disabled persons.

Please note that this report has been prepared under the sole responsibility of the ESIS II contractors.
It does not necessarily reflect the views of the Commision, nor does the Commission accept responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of information contained herein.
The ESIS Team of contractors welcomes any additional information or corrections.