The Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) is Malta’s national public body for science, technology, and research policy, and the entity legally responsible for administering the country’s national and EU-linked research and innovation (R&I) funding. Since 1 July 2024, MCST has operated its public-facing services under the brand identity Xjenza Malta (“xjenza” is Maltese for “science”), established by Legal Notice 112 of 2024 under the Public Administration Act. MCST remains the legal name of the underlying statutory body; Xjenza Malta is the operational brand a researcher will actually see on funding calls, the agency website, and correspondence. This guide uses both names interchangeably, as the agency itself does, and covers what MCST/Xjenza Malta funds, how it connects to Horizon Europe, and what an international researcher or research administrator needs to know before approaching it.
What MCST Is and How It Is Structured
MCST was established in 1988 as Malta’s government body for advising on science and technology policy. It acts for and on behalf of the Foundation for Science and Technology and today functions as Malta’s combined national research council and EU framework-programme liaison body — a role comparable in function, though not in size or structure, to Portugal’s FCT, Slovakia’s APVV, or Ireland’s Research Ireland: a single national body responsible both for domestic competitive funding and for coordinating the country’s participation in EU research programmes.
Xjenza Malta organizes its work into several specialized units, each with a distinct remit relevant to researchers and research administrators:
- Research & Innovation (R&I) Programmes Unit — designs and administers Malta’s national funding schemes (covered below).
- Framework Programme Unit — Malta’s National Contact Point (NCP) network for Horizon Europe, guiding applicants through EU calls.
- Internationalisation Unit — supports Maltese participation in bilateral, regional, and multilateral funding arrangements outside Horizon Europe.
- Policy & Strategy Unit — develops national R&I policy, including Malta’s National R&I Strategic Plan.
- Space Unit — coordinates Malta’s engagement with the European Space Agency and space-sector research.
MCST/Xjenza Malta operates under Malta’s ministry responsible for research, innovation, and enterprise, which sets policy direction and the funding envelope the agency’s schemes draw on.
MCST’s National Funding Instruments
Xjenza Malta’s domestic funding runs through the R&I Programmes Unit and is structured around Malta’s National R&I Strategic Plan 2023–2027. Three funding streams sit under that plan:
FUSION
FUSION is MCST’s flagship national R&I funding programme. It is a bottom-up scheme (researchers and organizations propose their own topics, rather than responding to a pre-set theme) structured as an umbrella covering multiple individual sub-schemes that span the innovation pipeline — from early-stage research through applied development and commercialisation. FUSION is the route most domestic researchers and Malta-based companies encounter first, and it is the closest Maltese equivalent to a general-purpose national research council grant. Because FUSION’s constituent sub-schemes, ceilings, and call calendar are revised periodically, applicants should always check the current FUSION call documents on the Xjenza Malta website rather than relying on a prior year’s terms.
Thematic Programmes
Where FUSION is bottom-up, MCST’s Thematic Programmes are top-down: targeted calls addressing a specific national market need, sector priority, or technology area identified for that funding cycle (recent examples have included digital-technology-focused calls run jointly with Malta’s digital innovation authority). Thematic Programmes typically run for a defined period and close once their objective for that cycle is met, so they are less a standing scheme than a recurring mechanism — a research administrator should watch for open calls rather than assume year-round eligibility.
Research Networking Scheme (RNS)
The Research Networking Scheme is a smaller, stepping-stone grant designed to help Maltese researchers build the international consortium relationships needed to compete for larger multinational grants — most directly, Horizon Europe. RNS funding typically supports networking activity (travel, workshops, consortium-building) rather than the research itself, and its stated purpose is explicitly to raise Malta’s participation rate in bigger European and global R&I programmes. For an international researcher, RNS is relevant less as a direct funding source and more as a signal: a Maltese partner who has used RNS funding is often already positioning for a Horizon Europe consortium bid.
MCST, Horizon Europe, and Malta’s EU Funding Role
Horizon Europe is the EU’s main research and innovation funding programme, running 2021–2027 with an overall budget of roughly €95.5 billion. Malta does not run a parallel domestic Horizon Europe budget; instead, MCST/Xjenza Malta’s Framework Programme Unit serves as Malta’s National Contact Point (NCP) for Horizon Europe — the designated body responsible for advising Maltese and Malta-based applicants on eligibility, proposal preparation, and partner search, and for representing Malta’s interests in the EU’s programme committees.
For an international researcher, this means MCST plays two distinct roles depending on the funding source:
- As a Horizon Europe NCP, MCST does not award EU funding itself — the European Commission (via its executive agencies) does that directly, following the standard Horizon Europe rules on eligibility, evaluation, and grant agreements. MCST’s role here is advisory and connective: helping a Maltese institution join or lead a consortium, clarifying eligibility questions, and signposting partner-search tools. A researcher building a Horizon Europe consortium that wants a Maltese partner (for example, the University of Malta or a Maltese SME) would typically approach MCST’s Framework Programme Unit as a first point of contact, alongside the prospective partner institution itself.
- As a national funder, MCST/Xjenza Malta awards its own money (FUSION, Thematic Programmes, RNS) under its own eligibility rules, which are generally narrower — typically requiring the lead applicant or host organization to be based in Malta, though international co-applicants and collaborators are often eligible or explicitly encouraged, particularly under RNS and any Thematic call framed around international collaboration. Eligibility varies by scheme and by call, so this should always be confirmed against the specific call document rather than assumed.
Malta also participates in EU funding channels beyond Horizon Europe — including Cohesion Policy funds, COST Actions, and various bilateral and regional research agreements — which MCST’s Internationalisation Unit supports rather than directly administers in most cases, since several of these instruments are managed through other Maltese government bodies.
Practical Guidance for International Researchers and Research Administrators
- Identify which relationship you actually need. If you want Horizon Europe funding and are looking for a Maltese consortium partner, your point of contact is MCST’s Framework Programme Unit (NCP function) plus the prospective Maltese institution directly. If you want direct MCST/Xjenza Malta national funding, you generally need a Malta-based lead applicant or host organization — check the specific scheme’s eligibility rules, since this is not uniform across FUSION, Thematic Programmes, and RNS.
- Check current call status before planning around a specific scheme. FUSION sub-schemes and Thematic Programmes open and close on a rolling or annual basis and their exact terms (funding ceilings, co-funding requirements, eligible costs) are revised between cycles; treat any figure not sourced from a currently-open call document as provisional.
- Use MCST as a Horizon Europe NCP resource even without seeking Maltese national funding. National Contact Points across the EU, including Malta’s, generally answer eligibility and partner-search questions from any Horizon Europe applicant, not only domestic ones — this is a standard, underused resource for consortium-building.
- Expect the MCST/Xjenza Malta naming split to persist in older documentation. Because the Xjenza Malta rebrand dates to July 2024, older grant agreements, prior-year call documents, and some third-party funder directories will still reference “MCST” exclusively. Both names point to the same legal body and the same funding programmes.
- Factor Malta’s size into partnership expectations. As one of the EU’s smallest member states by population and research-system size, Malta’s absolute funding envelope and pool of potential lead-applicant institutions are correspondingly small compared to larger EU member states — a relevant consideration when assessing consortium capacity or negotiating work-package allocations with a Maltese partner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is MCST the same organization as Xjenza Malta?
Yes. Xjenza Malta is the operational brand MCST has used since 1 July 2024, following its establishment via Legal Notice 112 of 2024. MCST remains the statutory legal name of the body; funding programmes, staff, and legal responsibilities carried over from MCST to Xjenza Malta rather than transferring to a separate organization.
Does MCST fund researchers directly, or only through Horizon Europe?
Both. MCST/Xjenza Malta runs its own national funding streams (FUSION, Thematic Programmes, and the Research Networking Scheme) funded from Malta’s own budget, separately from its role as Malta’s Horizon Europe National Contact Point. Horizon Europe funding itself is awarded by the European Commission, not by MCST.
Can a non-Maltese researcher apply for MCST national funding?
It depends on the specific scheme and call. MCST’s national programmes generally expect a Malta-based lead applicant or host institution, but international co-applicants, collaborators, and partners are frequently eligible or actively encouraged — particularly under the Research Networking Scheme, which exists specifically to build international consortium links. Always confirm eligibility against the current call document rather than a general assumption.
What is the difference between FUSION and the Thematic Programmes?
FUSION is bottom-up: applicants propose their own research or innovation topic within FUSION’s general scope. Thematic Programmes are top-down: MCST/Xjenza Malta defines a specific sector priority or market need for that funding cycle and calls are restricted to that theme.
Who should I contact to find a Maltese partner for a Horizon Europe consortium?
MCST’s Framework Programme Unit, acting as Malta’s Horizon Europe National Contact Point, is the standard first point of contact — alongside directly approaching the Maltese institution (commonly the University of Malta or a relevant Maltese research organization or SME) you are hoping to bring into the consortium.
Related CASRAI Resources
For the EU-wide funding context behind Malta’s Horizon Europe role, see Horizon Europe and EU Research Funding: An Overview, Horizon Europe National Contact Points (NCPs): How the Network Supports Applicants, and Horizon Europe Success Rates: What the Data Shows by Pillar and Call. For how other national funders in this same international-funder-overview series compare, see FCT Portugal, APVV Slovakia, and Research Ireland.
