“European Union recognition for Gozo’s regional status needs to be sought under the Union’s regional policy framework, even if under current approaches, the UE has considered Gozo as too small by European standards to qualify as a region.”

Former Prime Minister Alfred Sant stated this in Gozo while addressing a seminar on Saturday, entitled ‘European Elections: Gozo as a Region in the European Union.

Dr Alfred Sant, who will be contesting the EP elections in May, said that is indeed becoming urgent for Gozo’s decline to be put into reverse.

He added that during the last ten years there has been a straight decline in Gozo’s economic performance compared to the rest of Malta and other peripheral island regions of the European Union. “It has become essential to secure a consensus in favour of Gozitan regional decision making structures in order to reverse this decline.”

“For this to happen, action at Gozitan, national and European levels has to be taken to ensure the establishment of a regional development plan for Gozo. The structures for the implementation of such a plan would cover social and economic issues over a five year timeframe and would need to be backed by the central government,” said Alfred Sant.

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