Malta Signs 5 Year Agreement With Microsoft

by Robert Lee, Tax-News.com, London

11 June 2004

The Maltese government on Wednesday signed a strategic partnership deal with Microsoft which will result in the US-based software giant providing support for the government’s new information technology initiatives.

The agreement was signed by the Minister of Information Technology, Austin Gatt and the chief executive officer for Microsoft Europe, Middle East and Africa, Jean Philippe Courtois and will last for five years.

The agreement ensures that Microsoft will provide assistance in the implementation of a number of initiatives in the field of e-government, security and education.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi observed that it will help Malta promote itself as an investment centre and spur economic growth.

The agreement will also secure government departments favourable prices for software licences, thus helping to ease public expenditure, explained Dr Gatt.

"The ICT sector in Malta is set to play a vital role in building an export-oriented, knowledge-based economy. The government welcomes every effort that can drive ICT development forward and Microsoft has been at the forefront of these efforts," the IT Minster commented.

Meanwhile, Mr Courtois observed: "Still in its first weeks as a member of the European Union, Malta stands as an example to the other EU accession states in its embrace of the Lisbon Agenda's technology road map."

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