Malta

1) REFERENCES

Commission Report [COM(1999) 69 final - Not published in the Official Journal]

Commission Report [COM(1999) 508 final - Not published in the Official Journal]

Commission Report [COM(2000) 708 final - Not published in the Official Journal]

Commission Report [COM(2001) 700 final - SEC(2001) 1751 - Not published in the Official Journal]

Commission Report [COM(2002) 700 final - SEC(2002) 1407 - Not published in the Official Journal]

Commission Report [COM(2003) 675 final - SEC(2003) 1206 - Not published in Official Journal]

Treaty of Accession to the European Union [Official Journal L 236 of 23.09.2003]

2) SUMMARY

The February 1999 Report stressed that Malta had to undertake the transposition of the Community acquis in this field. In particular, it had to guarantee to apply the principles of freedom of movement and non-discrimination in this area. It was planned that Malta would participate in the Community programmes in the fields of education, training and youth.

In its October 1999 Report, the Commission noted that there were still some problems concerning free movement of persons and non-discrimination, such as access for women to vocational training and involvement of the social partners in policy formulation. The Commission underlined the importance of the fact that Malta's employment policy placed increasing emphasis on retraining human resources on account of planned structural changes, and was encouraging it to extend its activities in this area with a view to future participation in European policy in this field. Malta's wish to participate in Community programmes in this field was once again underlined.

In its November 2000 Report, the Commission noted that Malta had made progress in education and training, particularly in terms of its participation in the Community programmes in this field. An agreement between Malta and the European Community was signed in September 2000, allowing Malta to participate in these programmes.

The November 2001 Report recognised that Malta had made some progress towards reforming its education and training system by setting up, in October 2000, the Professional and Vocational Qualifications Council. Following the decision to boost the resources of the Ministry of Education department responsible for the Union's programmes, Malta was taking part in the second generation of the Leonardo, Socrates and Youth programmes.

The October 2002 Report stated that Malta had made progress in the area but work remained to be done on implementing the legislation on the education of the children of migrant workers and on drafting and applying a vocational training strategy, while at the same time allowing the social partners to play a greater role.

The November 2003 Report recognises that Malta is meeting its commitments in the area of education and training, although work remains to be done in order to implement the acquis in relation to the education of the children of migrant workers.

The Treaty of Accession was signed on 16 April 2003 and accession took place on 1 May 2004.

THE COMMUNITY ACQUIS

The EC Treaty provides that the Community shall:

• contribute to the development of quality education which shall include a European dimension and shall support and supplement the action of the Member States while respecting their cultural and linguistic diversity (Article 149, ex-Article 126) with regard to the content of teaching and the organisation of education systems;
• implement a vocational training policy which shall support and supplement the action of the Member States (Article 150, ex-Article 127) and shall aim to facilitate adaptation to industrial changes and increase employability.

These provisions are being implemented mainly through three major action programmes (Socrates, Leonardo da Vinci and Youth for Europe), which were recently updated into a new generation of programmes (Socrates, Leonardo and Youth).

EVALUATION

Malta has not yet brought its legislation fully into line with the acquis. It still needs to bring it into line with the Directive on the education of the children of migrant workers and with the reform of the education and training system. Access to and participation in vocational training measures still needs particular attention, as does the involvement of the social partners in policy formulation.

Following the conclusion of the agreement between the European Community and Malta on 29 September 2000, Malta has been participating in the Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci programmes since the year 2000 and in the Youth action programme since 2001.

On the whole, Malta has a high-quality education system and is well prepared for participation in the Community programmes. In January 2000, the Ministry of Education set up the unit responsible for the European Union programmes (EUPU) to ensure a coordinated approach to management of the programmes. The Ministries of Social Policy and Education share the responsibility for implementing the education and vocational training programmes.

In 2002 Malta adopted a number of regulations in order to bring its legislation into line with the Directive on the education of the children of migrant workers; it has yet to be examined whether these are in line with the acquis. Limited progress has been made in reforming the education and training system, and various elements of the current vocational training system should be incorporated with a view to lifelong learning.

Since the Commission's 1999 Report, Malta has made steady progress. Negotiations on this chapter have been provisionally closed (see the 2002 Report). Malta has not requested any transitional arrangements in this area.

Last updated: 04.03.2004