A National Skills Strategy and Action Plan for Malta

1. Identifying skills needs through better assessment, forecasting and foresight: Malta would benefit from a more co‑ordinated and forward-looking approach to skills intelligence. Recommendations focus on establishing a Malta Skills Observatory, developing a unified national methodology for skills assessment and anticipation (SAA), and extending analyses to sectoral and firm levels to better capture emerging skills needs.

2. Improving the dissemination of skills information and strengthening career guidance: Building on already strong career guidance services, Malta can further improve access and use of skills information. Recommendations include creating a centralised, user-friendly skills intelligence platform, publishing a regular Employment and Skills Barometer, expanding access to lifelong career guidance services, and strengthening parental engagement in guidance processes.

3. Empowering educators and school leaders for future‑ready education: Teachers and school leaders are central to equipping learners with future‑ready skills. Recommendations include introducing tools such as individual learning accounts or training vouchers for educators, developing competency frameworks, strengthening leadership training, promoting peer learning, and enhancing the attractiveness of the teaching profession.

4. Equipping learners of all ages with skills for the future: Malta is strengthening the development of digital, green and transversal skills, but further efforts are needed across the life course. Recommendations focus on integrating green skills into curricula, promoting VET pathways, supporting advanced and specialised qualifications, strengthening quality assurance systems, and expanding opportunities for non-formal and informal learning.

5. Encouraging and incentivising adult participation in learning: Despite progress, participation in adult learning remains uneven. Recommendations aim to promote lifelong learning through a comprehensive national campaign, strengthen financial and non-financial incentives – particularly in areas of skills shortage – and expand the recognition of prior learning and validation of non-formal and informal learning.

6. Incentivising employers to stimulate learning in their organisations: Employers are key actors in skills development but face constraints in providing training. Recommendations focus on strengthening workplace learning – particularly for SMEs and micro‑enterprises – through practical tools and support, exploring training-related legislation (e.g. training leave), and improving access to training expertise by better matching between enterprises and trainers.

7. Making better use of available domestic and foreign talent: Maximising the use of skills is essential for productivity and competitiveness. Recommendations aim to support firms in adopting productivity-enhancing practices, strengthen management and innovation capabilities, improve validation and certification of skills (including transversal skills), and better understand and address brain drain through targeted analysis and policy responses.

8. Strengthening the governance of the skills system: Effective governance is essential for co‑ordination and implementation. Recommendations focus on strengthening co‑ordination mechanisms – particularly through thematic committees of the Smart Specialisation Strategy – and establishing robust monitoring and evaluation processes to keep the strategy responsive and effective over time.