The final conference of the Excellent Mediterranean Net (MEN) project was held on 21 June at the Dolmen Hotel, Qawra. MCAST was a participating partner in this Interreg Italia-Malta project aimed at generating knowledge on the Italian and Maltese labour market and establishing a cross-border network to support the supply and demand of employment opportunities primarily within the blue economy, health, tourism and environment sectors.

In his comments about this collaboration College Principal and CEO Professor Joachim James Calleja emphasised the importance of international collaboration for young people to work and learn in the blue and green economy sectors. He said, “The shift to sustainability is opening tangible opportunities for new jobs with economic prospects and environmental gains. We want our College to be part of this shift towards innovation for sustainable development.”

Director for Community Social Responsibility and Event, Mr Richard Curmi, said, “This project has helped us establish a dynamic network with our Sicilian partners with a shared vision for successful island economies. Although this is the project’s concluding conference, we look forward to continuing to build on the findings and outcomes of this project to keep promoting the competitiveness of the Mediterranean region.”

The project’s general objective was to promote the mobility of Sicilian and Maltese workers by creating stable networks. The project MEN promoted the employment and mobility of workers in the following sectors:

• Blue economy;
• Health and quality of life (biotechnology, food and Mediterranean diet, services and networks for human health);
• Environment protection;
• Services for sustainable tourism.

The municipality of Acireale Capofilia led the project with the participation of several organisations including MCAST, ITS Archimede Siracuar, ITS Steve Jobs, ITACA Società cooperativa, Gal  Terre di Aci s.c.a.r.l, Istituto Tecnico Superiore Catania.