Keynote Speaker

Hon. Silvio Schembri

Minister for the Economy, Enterprise and Strategic Projects

Silvio Schembri is a Maltese politician and academic currently serving for the Ministry for the Economy, Enterprise and Strategic Projects.

Previously, Hon. Schembri was the Minister responsible for the Economy and Industry, and served as Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation.

Hon. Schembri attained a master’s degree in Economy right after graduating with a Bachelors of Honours in Economics from the University of Malta. Hon. Schembri started off his career by working in a private bank, and was later tasked with the role of Supervisor Economist within the Central Bank of Malta.

Hon. Schembri had also served as the chairperson of the Responsible Gaming Foundation Malta on a voluntary basis, set up with the aim of helping, educating and preventing problems in relation to gambling.
As a Member of Parliament, Hon. Schembri also chaired the parliamentary committee for economic and financial affairs and worked as an advisor for the then Economy Affairs Ministry.

Hon. Schembri was also founding member and general manager of the Gal Xlokk foundation.
During his tenure as Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation, Hon. Schembri was behind Malta’s first Artificial Intelligence Strategy as well as the launch of the AI Certification Programme. Hon. Schembri is also pushing to see that the Esports and Videogame Development sectors continue to grow. Hon. Schembri also played a vital role in seeing that Malta was the first jurisdiction to establish a legal regulatory framework for blockchain services.

During the pandemic, Hon. Schembri played a central role in the Covid-19 economic regeneration plan which comprised of several aid packages to support individuals and businesses.