Any overpopulated country with few natural resources faces formidable challenges to optimise the output of its people. In the last few years, the Maltese economy has grown rapidly but this was mainly thanks to the almost unrestricted importation of unskilled, semi-skilled and specialist workers from all corners of the world. The new national employment policy takes a critical look at this model used over the last few years. It proposes changes needed to make the dynamics of Malta’s labour market more sustainable. In fact, it was most refreshing last week to hear Finance Minister Clyde Caruana – who will be under enormous scrutiny today as he presents his first national budget – say that we need to focus on upskilling workers rather than buzzwords like “blockchain”. This must be music to the ears of many who have argued, including in this column, that our economic model and educational system need urgent reform to improve their output. The future of work in Malta will always depend on optimising our educational system’s output so that those leaving school or tertiary education have in-demand skills that would guarantee them a job that does justice to their qualifications. The...