Joseph Bugeja is no outsider to the maritime industry. As Chairman and CEO of Malta’s transport regulator, he has brought to Transport Malta over forty-six years of experience in the industry.
Two years into his role, Mr Bugeja has overseen the continuation of the great strides being made in the sector. His vast experience has allowed Transport Malta to steer through the covid-19 crisis, responding to new needs efficiently and effectively.
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In July 2018, Joseph Bugeja was approached by Hon. Dr Ian Borg, Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects to take over the helm of Transport Malta. Prior to his appointment Mr. Bugeja was well known and respected in maritime circles having served in various roles. His first important foray in the maritime business started on the 1st of April 1974, when the newly setup Sea Malta Company Ltd had welcomed its first intake of employees. Having previously worked in the field of logistics and customs clearance he had entered the company with a good foundation. In the
thirty-two years he stayed with Sea Malta he had worked in all the sectors and left upon its closure in the role of General Manager. Subsequently he joined Grimaldi lines, tasked with the objective of setting up regular RORO Services in Malta. Responsible for the development of a twelve-year business plan to grow the industry, big numbers were targeted and achieved throughout his tenure.
In October 2015, he founded the Malta Maritime Forum; a non-governmental organisation which serves as a common platform for those Malta-based entities who are involved in the maritime, logistical and transport sector in Malta.
Throughout my career I have seen Transport Malta from an external perspective. Now I am seeing from the inside. This combined experience has enabled me to precisely gauge how the Authority can best serve Malta’s Maritime sectors
Its aim was – and is – to also facilitate communication between the various sectors and the Government, so as to assist and promote the development of this industry in general. By way of introduction, Transport Malta is the Authority responsible for the regulation of all modes of transport in Malta: land, aviation and maritime. The maritime sector within Transport Malta – our focus for this article, includes the Malta Ship Register, the national shipping registry and the Ports and Yachting Directorate.
Adapting to the Covid-19 age
Transport Malta under Mr. Bugeja’s helm has registered many positive results and outcomes. The momentum that it had been gaining ground to nearly a total halt with the onset of COVID-19.
Malta rushed to implement early measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, securing strict prevention and control measures to successfully protect residents from a dramatic spread of the virus. This commendable effort perforce took its toll on most of the countries’ industries. The maritime sector was not spared and experienced a strong impact in every spectrum that the authority operates in – sea, air and land.
Transport Malta’s priority was now to ensure that the delivery of essential commodities was not disrupted. “This meant that trailers containing pharmaceuticals, cargo for supermarkets, and other such vital elements kept flowing through with little or no interruption,” Mr Bugeja explained. Added to this mechanism was now the protocols that had been adopted by the health authorities to ensure the health and safety of port workers.
Trailers containing pharmaceuticals, cargo for supermarkets, and other such vital elements kept flowing through with little or no interruption
Transport Malta is working hand in hand not only with the Superintendence of Public Health but also with the Malta Maritime Forum, Yachting Malta and the Chamber of Commerce’s Maritime Sector in order to together ensure that the lost ground is recovered as restrictions keep being eased
Transport Malta switched into this mode seamlessly. Mr. Bugeja was personally involved in ensuring that all operations relative to the Authority adopted protective and humane measures whilst maintaining the highest possible levels of operational efficiency given the paramount importance of “health and safety first”. He is very proud of the fact that all stakeholders – dockers, foremen, terminal operators, health authorities, all sat down and gave their full co-operation for the interest of the country – this teamwork ensured that no single voyage was missed.
Sadly, other operations suffered. The major areas impacted were the cruise liner segment, yachting and ship repairs. Whilst one would be forgiven for thinking that this would be the most appropriate time for carrying out ship repairs, the reality was that a lot of ship repair business was lost to competitors. The rigid health protocols put in place meant that bringing in crews was not possible, so business was lost to competing countries who did not have similar strict policies in place. Mr. Bugeja explained that ship repair business is not just about bringing a ship to a yard for repairs – there are a number of crew members on board.
“On a positive note, Transport Malta is working hand in hand not only with the Superintendence of Public Health but also with the Malta Maritime Forum, Yachting Malta and the Chamber of Commerce’s Maritime Sector in order to work together to ensure that the lost ground is recovered, as restrictions keep being eased,” Mr Bugeja explained.
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As initial reports of COVID-19 started to emerge in the media, Transport Malta set up an internal committee, made up of highly trained Health and Safety professionals from each directorate to lay out detailed plans for the Authority to ensure that it would be prepared for when COVID-19 reached Malta. Transport Malta has a compliment of 800 employees split into eight different directorates. As Chairman and CEO, Mr. Bugeja is supported by the individual directorate, which is managed by a chief officer and his deputy.
COVID-19 was very much about managing the human element – there were many years of workplace traditions in force, so changing to the standard office environment to that of teleworking was a challenge. People – accustomed to walk into the office in the morning for a day’s work, had to remain home and work equally efficiently from there. On the other hand, there were particular areas that had to keep functioning as usual. In this case extra measures were implemented so that work could continue with minimal disruption.
Operations are carried out on a 24/7 basis, with only five non-working days throughout the year
Port Workers Setup
Transport Malta’s role where dockers are concerned is that of a regulator which issues licenses to port workers. However, Malta has a particular arrangement and unique role in that Transport Malta has a manned office which manages three hundred and eight port workers and three hundred and fifty auxiliary port workers.
photo: Mr Joseph Bugeja speaking at an International
Conference on Cargo handling in Malta in 2019
This means that Transport Malta has a specialised team, based in their Marsa office to assign work accordingly. “This setup is totally different to what is done abroad, where stevedores operate on their own steam and are simply regulated by the local port Authority,” Mr Bugeja tells us, continuing to explain that the Malta Dockers’ Union is a very competent one, and both the parties’ priority is to ensure that the necessary work is done efficiently and that no ship will have a lack of resources when entering Marsaxlokk or Valletta. “Operations”, Mr. Bugeja reminds, “are carried out on a 24/7 basis, with only five non-working days throughout the year.”
We are located in the centre of the Mediterranean, equidistant from the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar. Nothing can take that away from us
On Remaining Competitive
Malta’s naturally deep and sheltered harbours and its position on major shipping routes has provided the archipelago with a unique and rich maritime heritage and cultural legacy linked to the sea. Throughout the years, this legacy has been combined with Malta’s legal tradition resulting in the formulation of the Maltese initiative at the 1967 United Nations General Assembly which subsequently saw the adoption of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
photo: a superyacht being overhauled at Melita Marine Group’s docks at the Grand Harbour
Setting up office in Greece was a bold move, one which we understood to have significant potential
We asked Mr Bugeja if recent events may have posed a risk to this tradition; and whether any external factors have jeopardised Malta’s crucial importance to the shipping routes. “We operate in a very competitive scenario,” he explains, continuing by assuring us that “it is a simple fact that Malta’s geographic location is ours to keep. We are located in the centre of the Mediterranean, equidistant from the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar. Nothing can take that away from us.”
This irremovable and inimitable competitive advantage is further strengthened by the manners in which we do business. Malta has to be effective and efficient and ensure that all stakeholders operate within a totally professional setup. It is crucial for the industry to survive to have stakeholders that not only understand the high level of competition that Malta is faced with but also appreciate the importance of ensuring that the workforce is more than adequately trained.
With Mr Joseph Bugeja at its helm, Transport Malta facilitates the strengthening
of the blue economy as well as enforces the respecting of the laws.
Regulator or Facilitator?
While interviewing Mr Bugeja, it became clear to us how vital to the maritime industry his interpretation of his role as Chairman and CEO of Transport Malta is; that of its being a facilitating as well as a regulatory body. Transport Malta enforces the respecting of the laws, the adhering to systems and procedures; and the operational practicality in so doing. At the same time, its being a facilitator is an effective driver which promulgates Malta’s blue economy. Simply being the regulator does not secure business. And Joseph Bugeja’s way of doing business has never been that of merely delegating. Indeed, his active participation in the industry’s discussions ensures that the message that he wants to put across – that Transport Malta means business, is clearly communicated. Of course, his extensive experience in all things maritime enables him to speak it as a natural language. For him it is about being close to the industry stakeholders – listening, discussing and proposing changes – all with the aim of corroborating Malta’s dominant international position within the maritime sectors.
We are located in the centre of the Mediterranean, equidistant from the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar. Nothing can take that away from us
Malta Ship Register
The reputation that Malta has built in this area – first in Europe and sixth in the world – did not just materialise overnight. It was the fruit of hard work carried out over a steady period of time. There are various factors that have contributed towards this success – a sound legal infrastructure and regulatory framework coupled with excellent maritime services that Malta offers – inside and outside of harbour; to name a few. The adoption of systems that facilitate crew changes has also been catalytic in ensuring quick turnarounds, as has also been Transport Malta’s dynamism in responding to the external factors which have battered our shores too. All this has been instrumental in building confidence in Malta by the maritime stakeholders employing Malta’s ample services. This confidence and the growth that Malta registered led to the bold move of having a permanent official presence abroad; the first being a permanent representation in London, with Malta’s Ambassador with the International Maritime Organisation. The next step was to gain a presence in an international maritime hub with a wellestablished major customer base: – Greece. “Setting up office in Greece was a bold move, one which we understood to have significant potential. Our representative is working hard to bring yet more business to Malta,” Mr Bugeja proudly explained.
Transport Malta’s vast remit
As a side note, Mr. Bugeja mentions civil aviation. The directorate is currently working on trying to repeat the success Malta has achieved with the maritime flag within the aviation sector. The 9H registry has seen substantial progress over the past three years with 471 aircraft registered. The directorate’s task is now to promote Malta as an ideal aviation partner. The key message being Professional, Practical and Effective. “There are many challenges but equally there are many good prospects,” Mr. Bugeja enthuses.
2020 saw Transport Malta face one of its biggest challenges in recent years. As soon as there was an indication of the challenges that Malta could be facing due to the pandemic, the Authority set things in motion to be as prepared as one could be. And its ability to promptly adapt stemmed from the fact that although it is a governmental institution, Mr Bugeja has ensured that it is nonetheless nimble and quick to react.
The Maritime sector is one of Malta’s economic driving forces. Malta’s geographical location is a natural, unparalleled, inimitable key competitive advantage and contributes towards Malta’s natural potential to be a centre of Maritime excellence in the Mediterranean. And our service providers provide within close proximity of each other excellent quality within all clusters held within our maritime sector. These two undeniable competitive forces are corroborated by Transport Malta’s commitment to inspire, promulgate and implement excellence. Mr Bugeja concludes this interview by proudly stating that “this is how Malta is maintaining and extending its hold over the international scenario.”
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