Building blocks

I remember when, as a small child, I was given a set of building blocks by a relative on one of my birthdays. I spent hours building houses or factories, bridges or schools. And I always wished I had more sets so that I could build whole towns.

Dr Refalo is Minister for Gozo

There was so much one could do with those building blocks, but if there were no more building blocks then you had to dismantle the buildings you had done and start another project. So imagine if you had an infinite number of building blocks, a plethora of villages, towns and whole islands you can develop.

Infrastructure is like those building blocks. You need infrastructure to widen your developmental possibilities. That is the strategy: to have the infrastructure in place in such a way as to attract not only your talents but also the capabilities of different planners so that together you can build a whole island. Without the infrastructure, you are limited on how much you can develop. It is such a strategy that is pushing this government to provide the basics for the economy of Gozo to continue to prosper and live up to its potential, as it has done particularly in the last four years. Gozo is finally finding its economic niches, small and clean, which fit in with its eco-island vision.

The promise of a second fibre optic cable is already encouraging companies based on internet security to set up in Gozo and we are seeing small companies locating in Gozo as well as local branches of bigger companies. The setting up of the Financial Services Gozo Foundation last week is aimed to promote Gozo as a location for financial companies to start operations here. They will most probably be small companies who are more cost conscious and who want a quieter working environment. These Gozo can offer. Anyone working in IT, financial services, gaming, accountancy and advisory services can in essence work from any location, just as long as they are digitally linked to the rest of the world. The other building block linked to this is the €16 million investment (partially EU funded) for office space that will replace the dilapidated building on the main road to Victoria, which at present is an eyesore. At the recent opening of a KPMG office in Gozo, I expressed my gratitude for such an initiative which brings professionalism to Gozo and offers Gozitan employees the opportunity to work in Gozo itself. However, the Gozitans themselves know the reality; that it makes a difference to their quality of life when one loses four to five hours daily to commute to work.

So we are trying to change that as well, by working on two other building blocks, the fast ferry and the permanent link to the mainland. Studies are being