Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1324024
14 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 JANUARY 2021 NEWS 11. Yorgen Fenech's house of cards Yorgen Fenech's compilation of evidence will continue throughout 2021. Many in the world of politics will be anxious to see whether past relationships and cosy alliances with one of Malta's top businesspeople will come back to haunt them. 12. Tokyo Olympics, again After postponing the summer Olympics and Paralympics because of COVID-19 by a year, the premier world sporting event will be held in the Japanese capital. It will still be called Tokyo 2020 and the games kick off on 23 July and end on 8 August. With no Olympic medal to its name, Malta's small contingent is unlikely to change its fortunes in Tokyo. Missing from the sporting events will be the fans. 13. Abortion Expect the debate on abortion to pick up steam in 2021. More mainstream voices will join the call for Malta to legalise abortion, making it increasingly harder for the political parties to avoid touching the subject. High profile people in the Labour Party and younger voices within the Nationalist Party will find it easier to make their pro-choice views heard even though people will generally remain against abortion. 14. Electric car changeover The date to stop the sale of petrol and diesel cars had to be announced in 2020. The date may be announced this year but a major decision will have to be taken whether the future will only make space for electric vehicles or also include hybrid options. Policymakers will have to factor in social and economic concerns apart from environmental ones. 15. Batteries to harness solar Electricity generated by solar panels constitutes a small but growing part of Malta's energy mix. But this clean energy does not provide security of supply because it is dependent on natural elements. To harness the full potential of solar, Enemalta will start looking at battery technology to store the excess energy generated for use at peak times. 16. Moneyval Malta awaits the outcome of the Moneyval test in the first quarter. Higher investment in its regulators and a slew of interrogations involving people close to power and good governance reforms may just see the country avoid the grey list. But restoring Malta's reputation will also depend on whether the authorities retain the zeal to prosecute high level cases of money laundering. 17. Supply chain logistics A delayed parcel, out of stock goods and delayed receipt of HIV medication were some of the Immanuel Mifsud ACADEMIC and award-winning author Imma- nuel Mifsud expressed his frustration at the sit- uation brought about by the pandemic. Speaking about his work as a Universi- ty of Malta lectur- er, Mifsud said his work life changed completely in a short span of time. "Between March and May we had to get used to a new system of teaching and examinations. Couple this with other re- sponsibilities, and the situa- tion was very stressful in some instances," he said. While online activities have made the teaching experience easier for some individuals, Mifsud stressed face-to-face contact "cannot be replaced by a computer screen." "Three months in, and I have first year s t u - dents I have never seen in my life," he said. The author has al- so faced hurdles in his publishing career, having to cancel three international book launches and two conferences due to the measures. The only advantage brought about by the pandemic according to Mifsud was the drop in traffic and parking related issues. "If only I can go to universi- ty and not spend half an hour looking for parking every time I'm on campus!" "If only I can go to university and not spend half an hour looking for parking every time I'm on campus" Benji Borg BENJI Borg, co-founder of digi- tal marketing agency ANCHO- VY, said that 2020 brought about digital changes that would have normally tak- en five to six years to gain any traction, as businesses sought any possible ad- vantage to overcome the s l o w d o w n b r o u g h t about by the spread of COVID-19. "We have seen a huge shift to digital, with customers and business finally recognising the importance of real-time interaction," he said. "The dig- ital landscape has changed and people have now become accustomed to a new reality, reflected in the way meetings are scheduled and held, and even in the retail experi- ence." Borg said that like many oth-