During a press conference, the Parliamentary Secretary for Youth, Research and Innovation Keith Azzopardi Tanti announced that five projects will benefit from the Post-Doc Fellowship Scheme.
This scheme, which was launched last year in collaboration between the Government, the University of Malta and the Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry, was open to students who graduated with a Doctorate to team up with local businesses to carry out research projects. This way, students will put into practice what they have learned with the aim of helping the local industry while gaining the necessary experience. This scheme amounted to €300,000, and each project is entitled to a maximum of €60,000.
Parliamentary Secretary Azzopardi Tanti stressed the importance of this type of collaboration between the public sector and the private sector, which led to the issuing of this scheme. “The Government will continue to encourage students to access employment and thus translate their years of studies into the field of research, by working jointly with the private sector, including Maltese businesses and enterprises,” stated Parliamentary Secretary Azzopardi Tanti.
He went on to say that this scheme continues to confirm the importance that the Government is giving to the research and innovation sector. “We are investing the sum of €300,000 directly in research and innovation so that the Maltese product continues to improve and can compete in the international market with other foreign companies,” concluded the Parliamentary Secretary.
The Rector of the University of Malta, Professor Alfred J. Vella stated that through this scheme the University of Malta worked closely with the stakeholders involved.
“Research is a fundamental part within the University, providing the necessary tools to further enrich and broaden knowledge across all areas of study. May an opportunity like this one help incentivise many students to pursue a post-doctoral experience,” stated Prof Vella.
Dr Marthese Portelli, CEO of The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry said that the Malta Chamber had been pushing for a scheme like this together with the University of Malta and are thus pleased to see these funds being awarded and they hope to see the scheme grow in future years so that industry-academia collaboration can become an integral part of the development of our industries.
“We believe that the success of those who are embarking on these projects today, can inspire many others to take the plunge and look into research and innovation as a key to the long-term growth of their business, and in the case of post-doc researchers, to applying their knowledge and capabilities for the advancement of our economy,” concluded Dr Portelli.
At the end of the press conference, the Parliamentary Secretary presented the funds to those researchers and companies whose projects were selected under this scheme.
