President of Malta Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca delivered the opening speech of the Malta-Albania Business Forum, which was also attended by President of the Republic of Albania Ilir Meta, who led an Albanian trade delegation.
Whilst welcoming him to Malta, the President said that President Meta’s working visit will not only consolidate the excellent diplomatic relations between Malta and Albania, but will also have a powerful effect, to stimulate further connections between the private sectors of Malta and Albania.
“Your working visit to Malta is an important continuation of the work we started in Albania, in 2016, during my state visit, when I was accompanied by a strong trade mission from Malta”, the President said, adding that during that state visit, important processes of connection between the business communities of Malta and Albania were initiated.
Building sustainable peace within our respective regions
President Coleiro Preca said that the focus that Malta and Albania are placing on socio-economic development is evidence “of our firm commitment to build sustainable peace within our respective regions, that is, the Euro-Mediterranean and the Balkans.”
Moreover, the President stated that the presence of so many Maltese and Albanian entrepreneurs and business people at the forum is a clear indication of the importance that both countries place, to encourage the friendship that already exists between our two peoples.
The President expressed her belief that it is essential for collaborations to include the participation of larger enterprises, but also between small and medium-sized enterprises, further stating that these links will make a valuable contribution to the multi-level mutual strengthening of Malta and Albania.
Opportunities to take Malta and Albania’s connections to the next level
The President said that Malta and Albania can explore various partnerships and collaborations, in diverse areas of the services industry, commerce, construction, education and training, and tourism and hospitality, amongst others.
President Coleiro Preca also mentioned that tourism, hospitality and education, are all sectors with a two-pronged effect, as they are not simply economic operations, but they are also a means of bringing our two peoples together, “to connect, and to develop our relations into sustainable friendships.”
The President called for the development of regular and direct connectivity between Malta and Albania, for further growth to be achieved in the tourism, hospitality and educational sectors.
The President reminded those present that governments are only enablers and interlocutors and that “the development of business collaborations and partnerships depends upon your endeavours.”
“There is no limit to what we can achieve together”
On concluding, President Coleiro Preca said that Malta and Albania’s geostrategic potential is immense due to Malta’s presence in the Mediterranean region and Albania’s position as a gateway to the Balkans.
The President of Malta and the President of Albania then presided over the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry and the Chamber of Commerce of Tirana,an MoU that President Coleiro Preca described as “positive evidence of the work which Malta and Albania have been building over the past years.”