T
he
Malta Travel and Tourism
Services Act (Chapter 409) and
its subsidiary acts dictate that the
primary role of the Enforcement
Directorate is that of monitoring
the tourism industry to ensure
that what is being offered is up
to standard. This is achieved
through regular inspections of
tourism operations to check that
these comply with legal standards.
This enforcement unit is the
only unit in MTA which is a
fully fledged directorate and
is composed of a chairman
appointed by the Authority and
two other persons appointed
by the Minister of Tourism on
the recommendation of the
Authority, one of whom shall be
a lawyer.
Presently
the
Directorate’s
enforcement
unit
consists
of one senior manager, nine
enforcement executives, five
assistant enforcement officers
and three clerks, as well as a
Senior Head based in Gozo
supported by another three
enforcement executives. Zammit
explained that this small unit does
not limit its actions to enforcing
the regulations, but coaches and
helps the industry to achieve a
higher standard than is required
by the law.
HOSPITALITY MALTA
“Being in constant contact
with the industry, the officers
of the Directorate act as a
bridge between the industry
and other units of the Malta
Tourism Authority and also
with departments like the
Health, the Lands, Police and
the Trade” he added. “We are
not there simply to check and
fine. We do far more than that!”
he explained. “In fact, we also
do work of compliance and set
legal standards for all sectors of
the tourism industry. Our aim
is a simple one - to make Malta
and its tourism operations more
attractive.”
Our aim is a simple one
- to make Malta and the
tourism operations more
attractive
Additionally, the Directorate
strives to further improve
Malta’s
competitiveness
as
an
international
tourism
destination of choice by working
with all stakeholders to ensure
that product, service and value
all reach levels which will enable
Malta and Gozo to continue
improving the seasonal spread of
tourism as well as its economic
benefits.
This is obviously an implemen-
tation of the MTA’s own mission
statement whereby it establish-
es and executes a tourism policy
which is based on the principles
of sustainable tourism develop-
ment to contribute to econom-
ic growth whilst respecting the
heritage and environment of the
Maltese islands.
SEPTEMBER | 2017
59