Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1150355
01.08.19 7 NEWS Salaries for Maltese church's 1,200 employees climb to €25.7 million as government steps in to finance homes for the elderly Maltese church's growing salary bill puts archdiocese in deficit MATTHEW VELLA THE Maltese archdiocese has regis- tered a marginal deficit of €137,000 in its operations in 2018, down from a sur- plus of €370,000 the previous year.e archdiocese employs over 1,200 people, which in 2018 resulted in an increase of €3.41 million in salaries to €25.7 million as a result of more full-time employees, primarily in homes for persons with disability, in the Sacred Heart and Sem- inary schools, and in the Archbishop's Curia. A total of €4 million was spent on cap- ital projects that include conservation and restoration of ecclesiastical her- itage. Donations, mostly by parishes, towards charitable action for people in need reached €562,000. e annual tax charge of the Archdiocese amounts to €1.38 million, an increase of €267,000 from the previous year. e income for 2018 increased by €2.2 million to €41 million, mainly from €10 million in government contributions, €9 million in collections and donations, €7.1 million in investment income, and €6 millioe Archbishop's Curia itself registered a deficit of €1.38 million fol- lowing the distribution of subsidies of nearly a million euro to Church entities. e Curia's income decreased from €8.9 million to €7.5 million, and saw remu- neration to lay employees increase from €1.7 million to €2 million. e subsidies given by the Curia to the homes of the elderly in which 353 people reside, doubled to a total of €436,000. is was due to the increase in operations and capital investment in these homes. Subsidies were also given to the children's homes of the Church run by Fondazzjoni Sebħ, that provide accommodation and therapy to 60 chil- dren and 15 adults including victims of domestic violence. For the first time ever, a subsidy was given to the Cana Movement. On the other hand, the Archdiocese registered a decrease in subsidies given to the Church media services and to the Foundation for eological Studies. e income of the Curia decreased by €1.46 million notwithstanding the increased income from investments owing to the higher dividend from APS Bank, that impacted the tax charge. Administrative Secretary Michael Pace Ross announced that with effect from 1 January 2019, a new agreement with the government to finance the op- erations of the homes for the elderly. Archbishop Charles Scicluna greeting well-wishers during the Christmas season AROUND 27 company represent- atives attended a seminar held by TradeMalta on Monday to discuss the future of advanced manufacturing. is topic was chosen as manufac- turing companies will need to adopt new technologies and innovative pro- cesses to ensure they remain compet- itive in a rapidly changing sector. e session opened with a pres- entation about the Fourth Industrial Revolution delivered by JP Fabri from ARQ Group. Based on a new publication available on TradeMalta's website, the study as- sessed Malta's manufacturing journey and how Industry 4.0 will usher in changes to business models, outputs, competition and skills. Emmanuel Francalanza, a lecturer in industrial and manufacturing en- gineering at the University of Malta, followed with a talk about the univer- sity's collaborative projects with com- panies in the manufacturing industry. ese projects have typically ad- dressed challenges such as sustaina- bility and energy efficiency, product development and process improve- ment. Francalanza also gave an overview of the state-of-the-art research and significant advances currently hap- pening in the manufacturing indus- try, namely additive manufacturing, micro- and nano-manufacturing, and digital manufacturing. Arthur Tua, director of Sentech Malta FP Ltd was invited to recount Sentech's successful internationalisa- tion story. e company has managed to po- sition itself as a leading international player when it comes to the develop- ment, manufacture and testing of cus- tom-built gyroscopes. Sentech now supplies its Fizoptika fibre optic gyroscopes to some of the topmost companies operating in the aerospace and transport industries. e seminar was closed off with a series of presentations given by rep- resentatives from Malta Enterprise about the support available to Maltese manufacturing companies looking to innovate. Pierre euma, CEO of the Malta Life Sciences Park, spoke about the entity's role as a national focal point to promote research and develop- ment, life sciences and information technology. Karl Herrera, Chief Officer of In- centives Development Evaluation and Monitoring, highlighted some of the incentives offered by Malta Enterprise to businesses that are looking to inno- vate and conduct research and devel- opment. Brigitte Tanti, Head of EU Pro- grammes at Malta Enterprise, deliv- ered a talk on how companies can boost their competitiveness through innovation management. is seminar was co-funded through the European Union under the Euro- pean Regional Development Fund (ERDF) – Operational Programme I 2014-2020 – 'Fostering a competitive and sustainable economy to meet our challenges.' Seminar explores impact of advanced manufacturing on the future of industry