eGovernment in Malta forms part of the remit of the Office of the Prime Minister. The development and implementation of the eGovernment policy is coordinated centrally by the Office of the Principal Permanent Secretary. The strategy is developed with broad stakeholder involvement; services are delivered through a mix of in-house and trusted third parties serving as service-delivery agents. Implementation is done in both a matrix and in a decentralised manner through Ministerial Chief Information Officers (CIOs). The CIO Forum is chaired by the CIO OPM and serves to ensure interoperability across Ministries, scalability of initiatives and a ‘one government’ approach. 

Mr. Tony Sultana  Principal Permanent Secretary and Chair of the Committee for the Digitalisation of the Public Administration     Source: https://publicservice.gov.mt/mt/Pages/Home.aspx

The Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA), which falls under the remit of the OPM (formerly Malta Information Technology and Training Services (MITTS) Ltd., and Management Systems Unit (MSU) Ltd.) was established in 1990. MITA is the central driver of the government’s ICT policy and strategy. MITA’s role is to deliver and manage information systems and services across the government to enable reform and innovation in the delivery of public services.  

MITA also provides efficient, effective and secure ICT infrastructure and services to the government and was recently given the role of National Coordination Centre, in line with the EU Regulation No. 0328/2018. 

Ing. Emanuel Darmanin  Chief Executive Officer – Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA)    Source: https://www.mita.gov.mt/en/

The eGovernment Services Department (EGSD) within the MITA provides horizontal services and solutions that enable a whole-of-government approach to public service delivery. The EGSD creates, operates and promotes the good use of shared platforms and reusable components to modernise the way government provides public services. Furthermore, the department provides government with back-office solutions that standardise activities and procedures to improve its efficiency and effectiveness, while providing a holistic and integrated view of operations to senior public officials and maximising economies of scale.

The Programme Management Department (PMD), within the MITA, is committed to delivering first-rate digital services by implementing a sound architecture, driven by real business transformation and software development excellence, and resulting into digital services and mission-critical systems having a more modern technological footing. 

The Malta Digitali Governance Board was set up by the Ministry for the Economy, European Funds and Lands to govern and oversee the implementation of the Malta Digitali Strategy. The Board will adopt a collaborative and consultative approach with other stakeholders, from different business areas and digital domains, to provide leadership, coordination, mentorship and support in implementing the Malta Digitali Strategy.  

The Data Governance Council was re-established in October 2020. A Chief Data Officer, appointed by Government in 2024 shall be chairing the Council. The Council is also made up of the OPM CIO as vice-chair, MITA, and other relevant bodies within Government. The Council is taking various horizontal initiatives relating to the sharing of data across the public administration. One important initiative that the Council is spearheading is the implementation of the Once-Only principle.

In 2022 the previous Core Group Digitalisation has been replaced by a Digitalisation Committee headed by the Principal Permanent Secretary. The aim of this Committee is to provide high-level policy and strategic direction for digitalisation of the public administration, as aligned to the pertinent national, public service and domain specific digital strategies. The Committee sees through the necessary prioritisation, the budgeting and resourcing, as well as provides the necessary governance. It works towards achieving cost effectiveness and maximising investment, leveraging economies of scale as appropriate. The Committee also works in close liaison with the Chief Information Officer (CIO) Forum and the Technology Forum, and appoints working groups from time to time to focus on specific and specialised key areas and activities.

The Malta Communications Authority (MCA) is the statutory body responsible for the regulation of the electronic communications sector (telecommunications, radio communications and broadcasting transmission), eCommerce, Trust Services, Accessibility of public sector websites and mobile apps, and the postal sector. The MCA’s mission, mandate and functions stem from the Malta Communications Authority Act (Cap. 418). The MCA is the National Regulatory Authority (NRA) for these sectors in accordance with EU law as transposed into Maltese legislation. 

The Malta Digital Innovation Authority (MDIA) is the national focal point which directs and facilitates the secure and optimal uptake of digital innovation. The Authority’s objective is to advance, promote, and facilitate the safe and effective use of innovative technologies in accordance with emerging national, European, and global standards. Through its mission, the MDIA also supports national competent authorities that regulate various sectors by fostering the development of regulatory processes related to innovative technologies. The MDIA put in place technology assurance programmes to provide better assurance (and therefore trust) to users by ascertaining that the software is doing what it is meant to do. The MDIA plays a vital role in promoting government policies that favour the development of Malta as a centre of excellence for technological innovation. It does so by implementing standards in the sector to position Malta at the forefront of technological innovation and by creating a cutting-edge hub for the digital economy. The MDIA supports the development of new economic sectors, whilst working in tandem to support other national competent authorities and Ministries from a technological perspective.  

The eSkills Malta Foundation, launched by the government in April 2014, is a digital skills national coalition made up of various representatives from the government, industry and education, to contribute to the increase in digital skills and the development of the ICT profession. It is also in charge of implementing the following mandates:  

• To advise the government and relevant stakeholders on matters related to eSkills policies; 
• To contribute to the expansion of ICT educational programmes and related training initiatives; 
• To lead an ICT professionalism development programme;  
• To instigate further reform in the ICT educational offer and contribute to capacity-building of the ICT education community; and 
• ​​To champion campaigns and promote the Maltese eSkills potential locally and internationally. 

The eSkills Malta Foundation is at the forefront in the development of further digital skills, competences and talent in Malta. Over the past years it has geared up to take on many initiatives in the area and has been recognised as a coalition best practice in Europe. The Founding members of the Foundation are the Malta Information Technology Agency, the Ministry for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation, Malta Communications Authority, Malta Enterprise, the Malta Gaming Authority and the Malta Chamber of Commerce Enterprise and Industry, and the Ministry for the Economy, European Funds and Lands.  

The Better Regulation Agenda of the Government of Malta is primarily directed by the Office of the Principal Permanent Secretary within the Office of the Prime Minister. This ties in with the whole-of-government approach to the reform and further digitalisation of the Maltese public administration.  

Through the central leadership, the focus and momentum are focused on streamlining the public administration processes to the benefit of citizens, businesses, and the public administration management and staff, without affecting policy objectives and public interests such as health, workers’ rights, and the environment.  

Work has been progressing steadily in a number of areas such as governance and policy, simplification and administrative burden reduction, inspection and enforcement, better policy-making/development, and stakeholder consultation.  Other supporting initiatives include the ‘SME Test’, ‘digital by default’, ‘Once-Only principle’, and increasing the use of open data. At an operational level, strong one-stop shops have been established for citizens, businesses and niche domains. The Cabinet Office within the Office of the Prime Minister has strengthened its impact assessment capacity and reach to cover the major laws and regulations that significantly impact Maltese society, the economy, and the environment.  

A cohesive effort spearheaded by the Office of the Principal Permanent Secretary through the Data Governance Council brought together several significant stakeholders to establish the operational and legal requirements for setting up the first base registries, the person register, the business register and the address register. These are important steps towards the aim to instil the much-sought Once-Only principle within the public administration. 

The National Audit Office (NAO)’s mandate is to provide assurance to Parliament that public funds have been used in the best manner possible and in line with prevailing financial rules and regulations. Thus, the NAO is enhancing good governance across the public service. For this purpose, the NAO carries out financial and compliance audits, performance audits and IT audits. Moreover, the Special Audits and Investigations Section carries out, amongst other assignments, audits mandated to the Office by the Public Accounts Committee or the Minister for Finance. The NAO is empowered to carry out any of these audit categories in all departments, public entities and companies where the government is a majority shareholder. 

Business First is a joint venture between Malta Enterprise and the Malta Chamber of SMEs. It is a single central contact point through which entrepreneurs are able to carry out the required procedures for the setting up, running and further expansion of their business in Malta. It also acts as an information point for business-related government services. This entity is currently working, on behalf of Malta Enterprise, on creating a Business Portal, which, when implemented, will support the national strategy in transforming Malta into a digitally-enabled economy across all sectors of society, especially by empowering the public administration’s contribution in strengthening the digital economy in the business sector.