Alessandro MANGION

• In addition to being the portal's lead writer and managing its social media, I coordinate and motivate a talented team of guest contributors from different backgrounds and perspectives to create a space where people can come together to discuss and analyse news, current affairs, and relevant issues in a genuine and meaningful way.
• The portal is designed to appeal to a discerning audience. It has proven to be a platform that doesn't shy away from tackling controversial issues and isn't afraid to ask challenging questions, thus giving voice to matters often overlooked by other Malta-based media outlets.
• Beyond general news, opinion articles, and blogs, the portal offers specialised sections for articles focused on the European Union, the economy, and the government's progress in implementing its electoral manifesto.
• In my capacity as The Journal editor, I produced and presented two radio talk shows ('Kafè Ewropa' on One Radio and 'L-Għażla għall-Ewropa' on RTK 103) in the run up to the 2024 European elections and have attended and given extensive coverage to practically every European Parliament plenary session in Strasbourg, including providing in-depth analysis and interviews on key debates and votes.

Note: I am currently in the process of returning to the European Commission as my unpaid leave is nearing its end. I will resume my duties as a Commission official on 1st November 2024.

• I led a young, dynamic team of journalists at Malta's leading private media house, ONE, while overseeing news updates and current affairs programmes across ONE TV, ONE Radio, and one.com.mt.

• In this position, I played a key role in enhancing the skills of the newsroom staff while recruiting and providing mentorship to new team members.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. Carmelo Abela, Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister, I was responsible for:

• the overall administration of the Minister's private secretariat and its staff;
• the formulation of the Ministry's strategy plan and its implementation;
• the coordination of the Minister's parliamentary affairs;
• several other duties assigned by the Minister.

Note: This position was made redundant due to the calling of an early general election.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. George Vella, President of Malta, the following tasks were undertaken:

• managing the relationship between the President (and the Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation - MCCFF) and the press. This included issuing press releases as well as scheduling press conferences, interviews, and other media appearances for the President. I also briefed reporters on upcoming events and decisions.
• managing the President's and the MCCFF's social media accounts;
• working to shape public perception of the President and manage crisis communication during challenging situations;
• advising the President on media strategy and how to best communicate with the public;
• analysing media coverage and gauge public opinion to help the President make informed decisions.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. Carmelo Abela, Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister, the following responsibilities were fulfilled:

• Providing advice to the Minister and conducting meetings on his behalf;
• maintaining close liaison with the Minister's Chief of Staff to ensure co-ordination of activities, priorities and deadlines;
• ensuring the effective maintenance of the Minister's appointments and schedule of events; advising all relevant staff of his movements;
• reviewing incoming correspondence/material, attaching relevant background material, and forwarding it to the attention of the Minister;
• co-ordinating a comprehensive control and tracking system for correspondence and public enquiries received, and responses being prepared for the Minister;
• drafting administrative correspondence and minutes;
• ensuring that operational priorities and deadlines are met and ensuring that the appropriate level of support services are provided by the secretariat;
• ensuring that the Minister's travel arrangements, accommodation, professional and other requirements are met;
• maintaining liaison with the Management and Personnel Office on the human resource requirements of the secretariat;
• attending to the Minister at Parliament as required;
• dealing as required with members of the public who write or otherwise communicate with the Minister.

The Ministry's responsibilities encompassed sustainable development, public broadcasting, and social dialogue, including facilitating connections between Maltese citizens, organisations, and businesses, and the opportunities and resources offered by the European Union. In collaboration with relevant civil servants and entities, I oversaw policy development and implementation in these areas.

A primary focus was on developing innovative approaches that would allow Malta-based companies to play a role in creating a sustainable future while maintaining or enhancing their competitive edge both in the local market and in the European Single Market.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. Carmelo Abela, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion, I was responsible for:

• Providing advice to the Minister and conducting meetings on his behalf;
• maintaining close liaison with the Minister's Chief of Staff to ensure co-ordination of activities, priorities and deadlines;
• ensuring the effective maintenance the Minister's appointments and schedule of events; advising all relevant staff of his movements;
• reviewing incoming correspondence/material, attaching relevant background material, and forwarding it to the attention of the Minister;
• co-ordinating a comprehensive control and tracking system for correspondence and public enquiries received, and responses being prepared for the Minister;
• drafting administrative correspondence and minutes;
• ensuring that operational priorities and deadlines are met and ensuring that the appropriate level of support services are provided by the secretariat;
• ensuring that the Minister's travel arrangements, accommodation, professional and other requirements are met;
• maintaining liaison with the Management and Personnel Office on the human resource requirements of the secretariat.
• attending to the Minister at Parliament as required.
• dealing as required with members of the public who write or otherwise communicate with the Minister.

In this role, I coordinated with various directorates-general within the Ministry and with external stakeholders on the development and effective implementation of foreign policy and trade promotion policies. A notable achievement during this time was the launch of the first Malta-Africa Strategy. I was also instrumental in organising, in Malta, the international conference ‘Pursuing Common Goals: Perspectives on Malta's Foreign Policy’ in 2019.

Additionally, I contributed to the preparation of policy speeches delivered by the Minister at EU Foreign Affairs Council meetings and at other events. I also penned opinion columns for the Press as the Minister's ghostwriter.

I was also involved in strengthening Trade Malta, a joint venture between the Maltese government and the Malta Chamber of Commerce aimed at assisting Maltese businesses in expanding their international reach.

Moreover, during this time, together with Trade Malta, I contributed to the organisation of several Maltese trade missions that were a customary component of the President of Malta's official foreign visits. Some of the countries targeted for these trade missions were India, Singapore, Ghana, Tunisia, Ukraine, Portugal, and Croatia.

Another project I participated in was related to Malta's bid for a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council for the term 2023-2024, which involved identifying the country's priorities as a member: security, sustainability, and solidarity.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. Carmelo Abela, Minister for Home Affairs and National Security, the following duties were carried out:

• keeping the Minister updated with EU and international news and current affairs;
• identifying EU and international policy issues relevant to the Ministry’s remit and advising the Minister on possible action;
• preparing dossiers and proposing positions on EU and international issues as requested by the Minister;
• following preparations in connection with the Maltese Presidency of the Council of the EU, and being involved in the preparation of JHA and FAC (Defence) Council meetings and in assisting the Minister during the Presidency;
• acting, where necessary and requested, as spokesperson for the Minister on European and International issues;
• analysing technical documents related to European and international events and meetings and, on their basis, preparing lines-to-take and/or speeches for the Minister;
• working in collaboration with the Ministry’s Communications Office to ensure an appropriate international and national media coverage of Malta’s positions and initiatives on the European and international levels;
• building contacts through the participation in relevant conferences and events, and through other available means.

As part of my responsibilities, I was heavily involved in the Ministry's role in Malta's Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2017. This involved frequent direct collaboration with the cabinets of the European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs, and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos, and of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission, Federica Mogherini.

Additionally, I contributed to the preparation of policy speeches delivered by the Minister at EU JHA and FAC (Defence) Council meetings, as well as at other events. I also wrote opinion columns for the Press as the Minister's ghostwriter.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. Edward Scicluna, Minister for Finance, the following responsibilities were undertaken:

• managing the Ministry’s communications team;
• advising the Minister on media, public-relations and image-related matters;
• analysing media coverage and proposing action or reaction;
• on the basis of instructions and direction given by the Minister: planning and executing campaigns; organising media events such as press conferences, policy measure launches, and the Pre-Budget consultation process; writing press releases in English and Maltese; dealing with enquiries from the public and the Press; updating the news section of the Ministry’s website; producing audio-visual material; liaising with the media to make sure the general public is well-informed about the Ministry’s policies, initiatives, and achievements.

Additionally, I wrote newspaper opinion columns representing the Minister's views on Malta's financial, fiscal, and economic policies.

• As Editor-in-Chief, I worked with a sizeable staff including editors, journalists, photographers, and page designers. Entrusted to propose a vision and a strategy and to coordinate the work of the editors of the company’s publications and news portal towards the implementation of that vision, I coordinated a major overhaul of the company newspapers' visual style, which was launched in October 2014, and oversaw a process of gradual evolution in content.

• From September 2014 onwards, I also assumed direct editorial responsibility for It-Torċa, the company’s Sunday newspaper.

As a person of trust appointed by H.E. Stefan Buontempo, Parliamentary Secretary for Research and Innovation, Youth, and Sport, soon after his appointment, my main duties were:

• overseeing the recruiting and managing the Parliamentary Secretary’s 15-strong team to support his work;
• the formulation of the Parliamentary Secretariat's strategy plan and its implementation;
• facilitating coordination with the Ministry for Education and Employment, of which the Parliamentary Secretariat formed part, and with the Office of the Prime Minister.

For the first time, Research & Innovation was prominently featured in a ministerial portfolio title, reflecting the commitment of the new Maltese government elected in March 2013 to strive to establish Malta as “the most innovative country in the world”.

During my stint as Head of Secretariat, all the necessary backing was provided to the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) to support companies to innovate through various initiatives, including funding, mentorship, networking opportunities, training, and policy development. A lot of work was also done on the creation of the Esplora Interactive Science Centre, which seeks to make science accessible and engaging, cultivating a culture of scientific curiosity.

Note: After being asked by the newly-appointed Parliamentary Secretary to help him set up his Secretariat in Malta in 2013, I took a temporary leave of absence from my role as official of the European Commission in Brussels. My intention was to return to the Commission after a few months, once the Secretariat was functioning and my replacement was identified. However, due to personal reasons, I ended up needing to stay in Malta after having relinquished my position, and then decided to pursue new opportunities in the local media sector. This explains the gap in my employment history after my departure from this role.

• Translation of Commission documents into Maltese from English, French and Italian; revision of translation work carried out by colleagues and by freelance translators.
• From 2009 till 2011 I have served as my unit's sentence manager.
• Co-editor of, and contributor to, the Maltese Department's linguistic journal 'L-Aċċent'. This responsibility entailed the coordination of both the editorial content and the team of colleagues involved in the project.
• In September 2001 I coordinated and chaired a workshop for the Commission's MT Web Unit in Brussels. The objective was to analyse whether the Maltese presented on our website is in line with the language used and understood by our target audience and by the Maltese mass media.
• Entrusted with mentoring new colleagues.

• Proofreading of Maltese-language manuscripts: preparing manuscripts in terms of style and typography; proofreading printer's proofs; delivering the 'pass for press' order; participating in the design of publications; participating in the organisation of and follow-up to the production process in the field of publications.
• On a personal initiative, I set up an unofficial liaison with the EP's Maltese Translation Unit in order to exchange best practice.

• Translation of EP documents into Maltese from English and Italian; revision of translation work carried out by colleagues.

• Production and co-/presentation of prime-time TV and radio current affairs programmes and talk-shows, as well as travelogues and culture-oriented TV shows, on national stations, plus the responsibility for the related PR work; writing of articles, features and interviews for national newspapers and magazines.
• In this period, I also carried out public relations jobs for organisations such as the Malta Insurance Association, the Malta Tourism Authority, the Malta Development Corporation (now Malta Enterprise), the Malta Song for Europe Board, and Moviment Kerygma. Furthermore, I was entrusted with translation works for the Malta Tourism Authority.
• In the meantime, I was involved in web-related news services, namely updating the news pages on maltamediaonline.com, as well as translating/summarising the leading stories on Maltese-language newspapers L-Orizzont and It-Torca's website. I was also co-responsible for updating Vodafone (Malta) customers with regular news updates via SMS.

• Production of on-diary and off-diary interviews and stories for independent English-language national newspapers The Malta Independent, The Malta Independent on Sunday, and The Malta Business Weekly.

• Production of on-diary and off-diary interviews and stories for national Maltese-language newspapers L-Orizzont and It-Torċa.

• Production of on-diary and off-diary interviews and stories for national newspaper Il-Ġens; production of news bulletins and their presentation on national radio station RTK.
• I authored one of a package of three stories with which RTK/Il-Ġens newsroom won the Malta Press Club’s Award to Journalists in 1997.