About GEN Malta

The Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) has been active in Malta since 2008, when The Edward de Bono Institute (EDBI) for Creative Thinking and Innovation at the University of Malta became the country's official national host for Global Entrepreneurship Week — joining the inaugural cohort of 77 countries to launch the campaign.  

Some inaugural Maltese events were co-organized by the Edward de Bono Institute, Malta University Consulting, and Ernst & Young Malta, and included an entrepreneurship training workshop, a speed networking session, and a Conference on Entrepreneurship titled "The Meeting of Minds," which brought aspiring founders and established Maltese entrepreneurs together to discuss the future of entrepreneurship on the island. 

The choice of the Edward de Bono Institute as national host was a fitting one. Named for the Maltese-born physician, author, and pioneer of lateral thinking Edward de Bono — one of the most widely recognized figures in the global history of creative thinking — the Institute has been embedded in the University of Malta since 1995, offering postgraduate programs in Creativity and Innovation and in Entrepreneurship. Its commitment to the science of creative thinking has given GEW Malta a distinctive intellectual character from the outset, and in 2016, GEW Malta was honored with a public lecture by Professor Edward de Bono himself. 

Over more than fifteen consecutive years of participation, the GEW Malta campaign has grown into a rich, multi-event program. Prof. Leonie Baldacchino, who coordinates the national campaign, has been a central figure in shaping its character — drawing on her research in entrepreneurial creativity, coping, intuition, and wellbeing, while also welcoming distinguished guests including international lateral thinking expert Paul Sloane, social innovator Dr. Nico de Klerk, MIT Regional Entrepreneurship Accelerator Programme Director Travis Hunter, and Professor Giovanni Corazza of the Marconi Institute for Creativity at the University of Bologna. Reflecting on the 2025 edition — themed "Together We Build" — Prof. Baldacchino noted that GEW Malta has, for more than fifteen years, brought the local entrepreneurial community together to learn from one another, collaborate, and build more resilient ideas. 

The campaign's recurring programming has included an annual MBA Business Concept Pitching Event — organized in collaboration with Dr. Nathaniel Massa of the University of Malta's Department of Management — in which International MBA students pitch early-stage business ideas to panels of practitioners for formative feedback. National Ecosystem Showcase sessions have annually convened representatives from Malta Enterprise, Trade Malta, Xjenza Malta, the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry, the TAKEOFF Business Incubator, ZAAR Crowdfunding, and other key support organizations. Postgraduate research seminars, creativity workshops, school-focused events reaching students on both Malta and Gozo, and Erasmus+ partnerships with institutions across Europe have further extended the campaign's reach each November. 

The Maltese government has engaged with GEN's Startup Nations policy community — GEN’s invitation-only global network of government ministers, officials, and policy advisors focused on enabling high-impact entrepreneurship. In November 2017, a delegation from Malta's Ministry for the Economy, Investment and Small Businesses attended the Startup Nations Summit (SNS) in Tallinn, Estonia — an event that brought together policymakers from more than 70 countries to explore regulatory changes and policy ideas to accelerate new firm formation. The Maltese delegation included Jeffrey Bugeja, Director of the Policy Development and Programme Implementation Directorate; Brian Grima, Senior Manager in the same directorate; and Marie-Claire Testa, also of the Ministry. Their participation placed Malta within a peer community of governments actively sharing best practices on startup policy — including at the inaugural Startup Nations Policy Hack, which was piloted for the first time at SNS Tallinn that year. 

Two years later, Malta's engagement with GEN's policy community reached ministerial level. H.E. Christian Cardona, Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small Businesses, participated in the Startup Nations Ministerial held during the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Manama, Bahrain in April 2019 — a convening of ministers from across the world to discuss the role of government in entrepreneurship ecosystems and how countries can better harness entrepreneurial potential for economic growth. 

GEN maintains relationships with key Maltese ecosystem stakeholders through the Edward de Bono Institute's broad network of academic and civic partners. These include Malta Enterprise, Xjenza Malta, Trade Malta, the Malta Chamber of Commerce Enterprise and Industry, the Malta Chamber of SMEs, the Foundation for the Promotion of Entrepreneurial Initiatives (FPEI), ZAAR Crowdfunding, the TAKEOFF Business Incubator, the Social Entrepreneurs Association Malta (SEAM), the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST), the Malta Business Bureau, JCI Malta, and Junior Achievement YE Malta (JA-YE Malta). 

GEN continues to work through the Edward de Bono Institute to connect Maltese founders, educators, and innovators to a worldwide community of peers, programs, and opportunities.