Updated | 'Malta on the way to becoming educational hub' - PM

'Malta on the way to becoming educational hub' - PM • Video by Ray Attard

The government signed an agreement with investor Hani Salah, as CEO and Chairman of the Sadeen Group, to officially approve the American university for the south earlier today.

The University was officially announced by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat on 1 May and it has already generated some controversy over the proposed site for development.
The new university is expected to cater for 4,000 students, and it has already submitted some of its university credits for accreditation despite its pending planning application. The courses include business administration, accounting, finance, graphic design and animation, game development, and computer science, with another 60 courses still in the pipeline.

A short clip outlined the proposed direction for the university, which will consist of five colleges, with the focus being on technology and health care education.

Other American University campuses can be found in Paris, Rome, Cairo and Beirut, and its Malta campus will aim to draw students from Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf states.

Dr David Miller, dean of digital media at De Paul University, offered some background on the institution. The university was first set up in 1958, to offer an education to those who could not afford it. De Paul is the largest Catholic university in the United States and it will be assisting in the administration and infrastructure of the new campus in Malta.

“The American University of Malta will be developing its academic programmes and policies in collaboration with the Chicago based DePaul university,” Hani Salah said during his speech.

Malta as an educational hub

In a speech delivered after the ceremony, PM Joseph Muscat said that today’s agreement was an important step towards Malta becoming a hub for education.

He mentioned other education projects the government was investing in, including the medical school planned for Gozo and the refurbishment of St Luke’s.

“As well as a hub for education, this investment will help offer pluralism in the tertiary education sector and promote Malta as an educational centre,” he said.

“I urge this new addition to work in synergy with other institutes, such as the University of Malta, MCAST, and ITS.”

On the location of the new campus, Muscat said that this was the largest investment in the south of the island ever and he did not rule out the use of alternative sites.

Muscat also outlined the establishment of a national park, a permanently protected 450-500 tumoli of land near the proposed site for the university.

Salah also explained that Malta was chosen as a location because it ‘ticked all the right boxes’

“The islands have been a crossroads for ancient and modern seafarers and traders for millennia, which means that several cultures have left their mark. Over the past 5,500 years, the islands have provided a home, stronghold, trading post and refuge for people from all around this region,” Salah said.

Salah added that anticipations were that the university would start receiving students by September 2016 with a temporary location within Smart City until the actual building is completed. He also explained that the University would also be offering some substantial scholarships, but that details about them would be issued later on.