MALTA ENTERPRISE

Their core work

Malta Enterprise is Malta's national economic development agency, responsible for attracting investment and supporting local businesses — especially SMEs — in accessing EU funding, innovation support, and international markets. Within H2020, they operated as the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) node for Malta, helping Maltese SMEs navigate the SME Instrument (later EIC Accelerator) and connect with European partners. They also organized the EuroNanoForum 2017 conference, linking nanotechnology research with industrial applications. Their core function is bridging Maltese businesses with European innovation ecosystems, not conducting research themselves.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In 2014-2018, Malta Enterprise focused heavily on building innovation management capacity, SME Instrument coaching, and internationalisation through the Enterprise Europe Network — classic business support activities. From 2019 onward, the keywords shift toward EIC, access to finance, and technology, reflecting the EU's rebranding of the SME Instrument into the EIC Accelerator and a broader focus on technology-driven growth. Their most recent project (ADMA TranS4MErs, 2021-2024) marks a pivot toward advanced manufacturing and Industry 4.0 support, suggesting a move beyond pure innovation coaching into sector-specific industrial transformation.

Malta Enterprise is evolving from general SME innovation coaching toward sector-specific industrial support, particularly in advanced manufacturing and digital transformation.

How they like to work

Malta Enterprise overwhelmingly leads its projects — 6 out of 7 as coordinator — but these are mostly small-scale Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), not large research consortia. Their 47 unique partners across 28 countries reflect the breadth of the Enterprise Europe Network rather than deep bilateral research relationships. Working with them means accessing Malta's national SME support infrastructure and their gateway role for Maltese businesses seeking European partnerships.

With 47 partners across 28 countries, Malta Enterprise has a remarkably wide but shallow network — characteristic of EEN nodes that connect with counterparts across Europe. Their partnerships span nearly all EU member states rather than clustering in any specific region.

What sets them apart

Malta Enterprise is the national gateway for any EU project or company wanting to reach Maltese SMEs. As the country's economic development agency and EEN node, they combine public authority mandate with hands-on business support — a rare mix of institutional credibility and operational agility. For consortium builders, they offer a direct channel into Malta's business ecosystem plus experience managing CSA-type projects with minimal bureaucratic overhead.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ENF2017
  By far their largest project (EUR 281,875) — organised EuroNanoForum 2017, a flagship European nanotechnology conference, demonstrating capacity to run major international events.
• ADMA TranS4MErs
  Their only participant role and most recent project (2021-2024), signalling a strategic shift toward advanced manufacturing and Industry 4.0 SME support.
• MELIITA
  Ran across four successive iterations (2015-2021), showing sustained commitment to Maltese SME internationalisation and a reliable track record of repeated EU funding.