Malta’s ELT sector predicted loss of €12.8 million
Malta’s ELT sector has been affected by Covid-19 and the country’s association FELTOM predicted €12.8 million drop in revenue this year. The organisation lobbies for further government support to protect schools and institutions and reports an expected decrease of the number of students by approximately 62,500 in 2020, a 72 % drop compared with the 83,610 students recorded in 2019.
Using industry records from the 2019 business year as a baseline, the association said that a 30 % decrease in student arrivals would lead to an operating loss in the industry as a whole, while a 70 % drop in students would equate to a €12.8 million loss in revenue.
The employment in the industry has been affected, too, and further job losses might be seen without additional government support. Government directly loses as the revenue from the ELT industry – based on income tax, national insurance and VAT contributions – could decrease by 66 per cent.
The loss of students during the pandemic has had an impact on transport, accommodation and activity providers, as they account for 43 % of variable costs for ELT schools. FELTOM has asked for government support to help cover fixed operating costs and wages for schools and funds to be spent on stimulating an accelerated recovery so that Malta’s ELT sector can position itself competitively in the months and next year coming.
Generally, more than 40 % of student arrivals are in the third quarter of the year (July-to-September) as the summer months lost, the support from government would mean that the operators and schools would survive the coming shoulders months and prepare the industry for summer 2021.
The ELT sector also highlights its essential role in the diversification strategy of the local tourism sector to promote a more diverse profile of visiting tourist and less reliance on traditional core inbound markets. The student nationality mix has been widened to Brazil and Colombia and the students from Turkey, Japan and Korea contributed to this with longer average stays.
The Maltese government recent budget news about the extension of the wage supplement scheme until march should help the ELT industry budget for the marketing recovery period.
FELTOM, established in 1989, represents more than 20 English language providers in Malta and is a member of the Global Alliance of Education and Language Associations ( Gaela ) and the Quality Assurance in Language Education Network (Qalen).
