Malta is capable of being at the forefront of research and innovation. This is through investment in educational institutions so that our children receive an education that prepares them for quality careers that are being created in the industries of the future. An important message delivered by Prime Minister Robert Abela while inaugurating research and innovation laboratories in the field of engineering, part of the first building dedicated to research at the University of Malta.
These laboratories are part of the TRAKE complex (Transdisciplinary Research and Knowledge Exchange) and will welcome students who are studying at Master’s and Doctorate level. In them, research related to manufacturing engineering, artificial intelligence, automation and robotic engineering will be carried out for both land, sea and aerospace vehicles.
Prime Minister Abela stressed that what is being inaugurated through working with synergy between Ministries, entities but also the vision of the University of Malta, is a clear sign of where we want to take our country for the years that coming to be at the forefront of the technological advances that are happening around the world. He said that this comprehensive investment of €39 million with public and European funds is a testimony of investment in education, especially in the resources that primarily prepare young people for the technology of the future. Here he mentioned another decision taken by the Government to reform the stipend system and increase them particularly for students who are studying in fields of the future and who give added value to our country.
Dr. Abela said that as much as the investment in human resources, the researchers who bring about the success of a project like the one inaugurated at the University because the laboratories and the state-of-the-art equipment there are given the – life from the wisdom of Maltese students. He also supported this during his visit to the laboratories and spoke to the students who are also researching in electronics testing where smart technologies are being created applied in various fields so that we can continue to improve efficiency for example in the use of energy in our buildings.
The Prime Minister also referred to a visit he had earlier this week to the Trelleborg factory and he also noted how in our country there are many companies that are thriving with innovation and offer quality products that end up in everything we use on a daily basis such as cars, medicines, mobile phones and other gadgets. “Therefore such an investment is important because we are preparing the students for what they will find in the industry, indeed more than that these students will shape where the industry wants to go”, claimed Prime Minister Abela. He also pointed out that while we are investing in top level laboratories for research and innovation, we also want to invest in those students who see with their eyes, do it with their hands. Here he mentioned the courses in trades where science and technology are also involved.
The Prime Minister said that this is why the initiative at the University of Malta is not an isolated one but gives a clear direction to the seeds that we have planted in new industrial fields. This is in the context of what is being done so that as a country we continue to grow with science and technology even in early education. This is in clear thinking that our education is aligned with the economy we are creating.
Photos: DOI/OPM
