Malta Sulfurius, an island of mass tourism which is prone to corruption and is prone to epidemics

On November 11, 2020 on a street in Valletta, Malta.

She claims to believe in a better tomorrow, but the concern shines in spite of everything, behind her generous smile. After ten years in tourism, Vanessa Vassallo has pledged to look for a job in just another area. In HR or IT, it doesn’t matter: he has no choice. Due to the Kovid-19 epidemic and declining visitor numbers, her contract with an event company in Valletta, the capital of Malta, was not renewed. “This job is my passion, I hope to be able to return it as soon as possible,” The woman believes. It is difficult, uncertainty creates great concern for everyone working in hotels and restaurants. “

Nigel Scicula will remember for a long time on March 7, 2020. It is springtime when the first case of Kovid-19 was detected on the island. “In an hour or two, the restaurant became completely free of its customers, and began to cancel”, He says. Ta’Detta, a traditional restaurant run by his family, is located on Valletta Beach. It is open every day, but tourists are rare. “Some cruise ships dock at the port, but passengers are not allowed to go down for dinner We have. “ Today, the establishment is largely successful for public assistance.

Located off Sicily, Libya and the Tunisian coasts, Malta is a 450,000-inhabitants, European country where Spain as well as the Kovid-related recession has been the most violent. According to Eurostat, in the second quarter of 2020, its gross domestic product (GDP) fell to 17.1%, and the decline is expected to remain at 9% for the full year. And for good reason: Tourism is one of the main sources of income for the island, weighing more than 17% of GDP. Between 2019 and 2020, the number of foreign visitors fell by 76%, from 2.7 million to 700,000. In January, the airport provided only 28 air links. A year ago, there were hundred.

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“One of the biggest aid schemes in the world”

“To cope, the government has deployed one of the world’s largest aid schemes, which is more than 20% of total GDP, according to Columbia University”, Gordon Cordina, Description of Economic Analysis Firm E-Cubed Consultants. Especially with the deployment of partial unemployment and a series of business support. Over the next few months, the archipelago will receive 1.1 billion euros (including 316.5 million in subsidies) from the European Recovery Fund. “We hope it will help our small businesses survive and beat our economy.”Paul Abella, president of the Maltese Chamber of SMEs, says. Both will be important for our country. “

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About the Author: Forrest Morton

Organizer. Zombie aficionado. Wannabe reader. Passionate writer. Twitter lover. Music scholar. Web expert.

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