The project was launched by Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation Silvio Schembri and Parliamentary Secretary for European Funds and Social Dialogue Aaron Farrugia.

The lack of women participation in the IT sector is a problem experienced all across the European Union, and the whole world, nowadays. In 2017, the employment rate for men in this sector in the European Union was 76.9%, while for women it was 65.3%. Therefore, the target for 2020 in the EU is to reach 75% for both genders.

The initiative will be implemented in many countries, like Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania and Spain with €2.7m as the total budget allocated for this purpose. Out of this fund, Malta can call for €346,672 between September 2018 and August 2021.

The project is hoped to develop digital competencies and employability of young women vulnerable of getting out of a job, as well as to provide innovative solutions to increase the numbers of young women in ICT careers and in the digital economy. Special focus will fall on unemployed young women, women returning to work after maternity leave and women coming from low income or disadvantaged families. The main tools used are awareness-raising, skills assessment, innovative partnerships with employers, development of a new online employability profiling tool and training in digital jobs, according to the DOI release.

“As a country, we have improved a lot within the digital space, now becoming a main point of reference, yet we are still lagging behind in women participation. If addressed now, the digital sector could be the first sector where we could see women on par with men”, said Mr Schembri.

“This is an exciting time for women. After registering a spike in the number of women elected to the European Parliament, I look forward to the next legislature to see the fruit of the positive measures being taken locally to increase the number of women in the Maltese Parliament”, said Mr Farrugia.

“It is encouraging to see the government fully committed to reducing the digital divide and organisations coming together today to support this collaborative framework. Thanks to this commitment we can ensure that women and young girls are truly allowed to decide their future and regain their destiny” said Dana Farrugia the CEO at Tech.MT, an organisation launched by the Malta Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the government, aiming to help support further growth of the local technology sector.

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Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation Silvio Schembri welcomed the result and urged for further educating the youth improving their skills in the sector, according to a press statement by the government’s Department of Information (DOI).

“While Malta’s digital infrastructure is at the forefront as reflected in the DESI assessment itself, our next challenge is to enhance the existing skills and that of future generations which are now required in most jobs,” Mr Schembri said.

Malta also ranked second in terms of the take-up of fast broadband available to households. In 2018, some 69% of households were equipped with fast broadband service while the European average stood at 41%. Mobile broadband take-up was up to 97% in 2018, from 65% in 2016.

At the same time, when addressing the DESI results, Mr Schembri also highlighted the importance of gender equality in the workplace. “While as a country we have moved fast in the digital space, we are still lagging behind in female participation in the ICT sector. Hence, as a government, we are committed to boosting our efforts in encouraging women to pursue a career in this industry,” he said.

In addition to comparing the EU28 countries, the bloc is also compared to 17 other countries internationally by the International Digital Economy and Society Index (I-DESI). While the top four DESI scoring EU countries come as second after South Korea — and before Norway — on the I-DESI list, the EU average fits well into the international average, according to this measure.

The I-DESI utilises 24 datasets to analyse and compare 45 countries — the EU28 and 17 non-EU. The comparison is made based on five dimensions developed by DESI; connectivity, digital skills, citizens use of internet, business technology integration and digital public services.

The full study is available for public download at the website of the European Commission.

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Similarly to its approach to blockchain and distributed ledger technologies (DLTs), the Maltese government has once again confirmed that they are committed to positioning the country at the forefront of artificial intelligence development. Malta aspires to become the “Ultimate AI launchpad” — a place where stakeholders can develop, prototype, test and scale AI projects.

Wayne Grixti, Chair of Malta.AI Taskforce, during his opening speech for the public consultation workshop, made a reference to how the island nation has gained international recognition as the “Blockchain Island” after the “landmark bills” regulating the blockchain space came into force on 1 November 2018. He added that now they are planning to position Malta similarly in terms of AI.

“AI for us is not robots and machines that will take over the world […] and it surely is not something that will solve our all problems,” Mr Grixti said. He acknowledged that AI is now subtly part of all layers of technology, and in this regard, AI needs to be dealt with in a duly manner. He added that the task force, therefore, is now working on a legal and ethical framework for AI operations on the island.

He opened the floor for everybody to get in touch with the task force in the upcoming month, in order to share ideas as part of the public consultation. Malta.AI Taskforce says that Malta’s National AI Strategy aims to regulate the AI space in the country, with a special focus on maximising the social and economic benefits of the technology.

The task force also says that risks are acknowledged and mitigated in order to create stability and safety in the local markets. The strategy also takes into account the Draft Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI published by the European Commission’s EU High Level Expert Group on AI in December 2018, the task force adds.

Immense AI enthusiasm for such a small country

Mr Schembri during his keynote speech at the public consultation workshop said that for such a small country, enthusiasm and interest in AI are immense, which paints a rosy picture of the future of AI in Malta.

The parliamentary secretary said he believes Malta carries many benefits for the AI progress. Factors such as a technologically up-to-date regulatory framework, English being the national language, a tech-savvy population, and telecommunications infrastructure being among the most advanced in Europe make the country a great place for AI development.

Mr Schembri underlined that their strategy will rest on strong pillars. These include raising awareness about and visibility of AI technology, attracting AI talent from overseas to educate the local landscape, positioning Malta as a technology hub, and promoting technology entrepreneurship on the island.

Mr Schembri also said that they are working on adopting AI solutions in the public sector to make the life of citizens easier. He emphasised that a government cannot expect the private sector to turn to new technologies if they do not do it on their own. He said the government also encourages small and middle-sized businesses to embrace and adopt AI, promises to help local businesses to make the best of AI, and commits help to build trust in how AI works in terms of transparency and accountability.

Education and workforce are the key factors in turning AI into a success story, Mr Schembri said, using the word “enablers”, when describing how the task force sees the role of these two areas.

Parliamentary secretary Schembri also pointed out that AI is not about robots taking the jobs of people, but about technological processes complementing and aiding the operations of businesses and the everyday life of society.

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“As from this year, the success of [Malta Information Technology Agency] MITA’s Student Placement Programme will be replicated in the gaming and financial services sector,” Mr Schembri said on Monday when launching the 11th edition of MITA’s Student Placement Programme.

Mr Schembri tagged the last 11 years of MITA’s Student Placement Programme as a bridge for students to implement their studies in a working environment. “We are aware of circumstances where students’ get the necessary results but lack in experience, and this is what the programme has successfully addressed over the years,” the parliamentary secretary said. He added that such programmes help add practical knowledge to the students’ skill set, helping them in preparing for the future’s labour market.

He urged all employers from the private sector, public service and NGOs to participate in the programme and become an active part of this exciting journey which is providing our youth with unique hands-on experience, all the while developing tomorrow’s future workforce, the DOI press statement reported.

In the last five years, MITA and employer partners were able to offer over 1,600 placements, which translates to an investment of over €2.6m providing students with this positive experience.

Applications for students and employers who wish to participate in the Student Placement Programme are open till 29 March, the DOI statement says.

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