The Planning and Priorities Coordination Department (PPCD)
Contact Details:
Planning and Priorities Coordination Department
Office of the Prime Minister
12/13, St Paul Street, Valletta
VLT 1210, Malta
Tel: ( 356) 2200 1142/3
Fax:( 356) 2200 1141
E-mail
- For general queries, research enquiries or customer care, please contact our Online Helpdesk.
- For urgent press or media enquiries, kindly call PPCD Communications Unit.
- For specific queries, please contact each unit directly by using our staff directory.
Mission Statement
PPCD aims to ensure the efficient absorption and management of European assistance, both EU and bilateral, through effective coordination across Government Departments, Authorities, Agencies and other stakeholders.
Apart from providing the above-mentioned services, PPCD also ensures maximum transparency and information in relation to the funds which fall under its responsibility. This function is carried out through the organisation of training sessions, information activities and communication with the media, potential applicants for funding and the general public.
Main Role and Functions
PPCD (formerly known as the Regional Policy Directorate) was set up within the Office of the Prime Minister in March 2001 as part of the administrative infrastructure required to manage the pre- and post-accession funds allocated to Malta by the European Union (EU).
Today, PPCD is fulfilling a number of main functions:
National Coordinator for
Interreg III Programmes - Interreg III A Italia-Malta Progamme; Interreg III B Archimed and Medocc Programmes; Interreg III C South Zone Programme;
National Focal Point for a number of
bilateral funding instruments , including the Vth Italo-Maltese Financial Protocol, the EEA/Norwegian Financial Mechanisms, and the Swiss Cooperation Programme;
National Contact Point for
other programmes, including the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument (ENPI), the European Globalisation Fund and the European Solidarity Fund.
Director General - Ms Marlene Bonnici
Marlene Bonnici, BEd (Hons), PGC (Diplomatic Studies), joined the diplomatic stream of the Public Service in 1992, serving in Malta's embassy in Bonn and subsequently Brussels.
In 1999 she was posted to the EU Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She was appointed Director (Planning and Priorities Coordination) in June 2001 and Director General in August 2004.
Director (Programmes and Projects) - Mr Stephen Calleja
Stephen Calleja has been working in the Office of the Prime Minister since he joined the Public Service in 1987. He served in the Office of the Electoral Commission, the Department of Corporate Services and the Directorate-General for a number of years, before moving to the Regional Policy Directorate (now the PPCD) in 2001.
Mr Calleja was appointed Assistant Director (PPCD) in 2002 and eventually Director (Programmes and Projects), PPCD in January 2008.
EU Affairs Directorate within the Planning and Priorities Coordination Department
The EU Affairs Directorate within the Planning and Priorities Coordination Department is responsible for managing the Office of the Prime Minister’s participation in European Union (EU) structures and processes, as well as for ensuring effective coordination of all EU-related matters at a domestic level and with other EU stakeholders, including other Ministries, the Permanent Representation of Malta to the EU and the EU Secretariat within the Office of the Prime Minister.
The Directorate also ensures the overall coordination of projects (financed by pre-2007 EU funding programmes) undertaken by OPM Departments and entities falling within its remit, thereby facilitating the projects' successful and timely conclusion.
The Director (EU Affairs) also represents the Office of the Prime Minister in various EU-related committees both locally and abroad.
Director (EU Affairs) - Mr Joseph Fenech
Joseph Fenech joined the Public Service in 1987 and has served in the Department of Health and in the Department of Social Security before moving to the Office of the Prime Minister in 1997. He served in the Management and Personnel Office (OPM) for a number of years, before being appointed EU Coordinator (in 2001), Assistant Director – EU Affairs (in 2003) and eventually Director (EU Affairs) in August 2004.