Malta Cooperative Federation (MCF) has produced 13 proposals for this year’s national budget which “show how co-operative ownership can turn public assets, essential services and economic opportunity into lasting community benefit”.
Proposals include investigation the possibility of establishing Manoel Island as a community co-operative, and reforms of community ownership, housing, social care and energy.
The MCF’s Shared Prosperity, Stronger Communities, developed after consultations with the Local Councils Association, argues that “Malta’s economic success should be measured not only by growth, but by whether it improves the everyday lives of people in Malta and Gozo.”
Its flagship proposal is to explore establishing Manoel Island as a community co-operative. The island was subject to a dispute after the government signed a 99-year concession agreement with Midi plc, a consortium of local companies, to facilitate its redevelopment. In 2016, activists staged protests over disputed access to the foreshore and the stalling of development work, and last year, ministers cancelled the deal and repurchased the island.
“Rather than viewing the island’s future as a choice between direct public administration and a private concession,” said MCF, “we believe Malta should consider a third option: a community-led model that combines long-term stewardship with democratic participation.”
Related: Canadian co-op leaders gather to promote the sector in parliament
This, the federation argues, would mean assessing how local stakeholders could meaningfully help manage the site, how income from suitable cultural, leisure and hospitality uses could be reinvested locally, and how conservation and public access could be protected.
The MCF wants a feasibility and governance study, informed by stakeholder consultation, to test the legal, financial and operational requirements before any decision is taken, and hopes the model could be replicated for other public spaces and heritage sites.
Other proposal include a statutory right of first refusal for community co-ops when suitable public property is offered for lease or sale.
MCF has also proposed considering assets confiscated from organised crime for structured social reuse, with clear rules and viability checks. “Formerly illicit resources could support youth services, reintegration projects, social enterprises and community organisations,” it added.
The federation also wants commitments on allocating suitable public land for housing co-ops, increasing co-op provision in social care, and measures to explore the potential of community rooftop solar energy.
On finance, MCF has suggested a working group with the government, financial authorities, and the co-operative movement “to assess whether Malta can responsibly develop co-operative banking within its regulatory framework”.
There are also a number of proposals on reforming the operating landscape for co-operatives. These include making Malta Enterprise support more accessible, acting on the government’s earlier commitment to audit exemptions for qualifying small co-operatives, and piloting “socially responsible public procurement that considers measurable social outcomes alongside cost and service quality”.
Other recommendations are a Social Inclusion Employment Fund supported by a defined share of penalties for non-compliance with disability-employment obligations, and a review of employment and self-employment rules affecting legally resident non-EU nationals who wish to participate in worker co-operatives.
Finally, MCF has called for regulatory reform, with an overhaul of the Co-operative Societies Act.
“Clearer rules, sound governance, transparency and stronger members’ rights are essential if co-operatives are to innovate while remaining accountable to the people they serve,” it said.
Image of Manoel Island: Matthew Benn/Wiki CC
