The education sector in the Kingdom, especially research and development, is one of the major areas that Malta would like to focus on, since it has a strong educational system and one of the oldest universities in the world.

This was disclosed to Arab News by Malta’s Ambassador, Stephen Borg in his first posting to the Middle East. He said: “We plan to intensify cooperation between the University of Malta and universities in Saudi Arabia.”

The envoy, who was among the diplomats yesterday attending the Third International Exhibition and Forum for Education (IEFE 2013), said Malta has been traditionally strong in the field of medicine where it has an international program attracting students as far as Australia and Canada as well as from the Gulf.

“Other areas where we are strong are civil engineering and architecture,” he said, adding that the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies (MEDAC) is an institution of higher learning offering advanced degrees in diplomacy and conflict resolution, which attracts students from 54 countries.

Borg noted that English language schools are another strong point for Malta. It is an ideal and also a pleasant place to learn English where the standards are high, he said, adding: “We hope to attract students from Saudi Arabia.”

The envoy underlined the growth potential in the bilateral ties between Malta and Saudi Arabia. He said Malta’s ties with Saudi Arabia have traditionally been strong, but there is an immense potential for growth in our bilateral relations.

“As a country at the very center of the Mediterranean with traditionally strong links with North Africa and the Arab world and a member of the European Union since May 1, 2004 and the Euro zone since Jan. 1, 2008, we are in a very good place to take our bilateral relations on an even stronger level.”

The ambassador said there has been a deliberate decision at the highest levels of government to give relations with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf a higher political profile, including by opening embassies in the region.

“On the political level,” he said, “we wish to emphasize our desire for bringing our country closer to Europe and the Arab world.”

Malta hosted the first EU-League of Arab States Ministers’ meeting in February 2008, which was attended by Prince Saud Al-Faisal. The second such meeting — the so-called Malta II — was held in Cairo in 2012.

“I believe we can do a lot with Saudi Arabia in this field,” he stressed.

Borg said his country has a healthy trade exchange volume with Saudi Arabia.

“We export goods to Saudi Arabia in the volume of € 20.8 million, half of which are food products. We import € 16.3 million the bulk of which is in organic chemicals. There is of course room for improvement both ways and it is my intention to help increase these numbers.”