Manual on Staff Development in the Public Service

4.1         Considering the Options 

4.1.1      When it is not possible to provide in-service training in specific and specialised areas, departments have to use external, local and overseas resources in order to enhance the academic level and particular skills and abilities of their employees.  This type of training requires careful planning and study. Courses offered by local and overseas educational institutions and training organisations should be evaluated beforehand so as to ensure that they provide the type and level of training required by the department and each employee.

4.1.2      External training is a useful tool for the development of managerial, supervisory, professional and technical skills.  It should provide quality training which might be unavailable internally. It can be used to implant highly specialised knowledge or advanced skills and has the added advantage of broadening the horizons of those exposed to it.  This form of training should be regarded as a complementary activity which serves to stimulate learning or provide knowledge and skills that cannot be obtained through in-service training.  However, it should always be subsidiary to what an individual does and learns in his/her normal place of work.

4.1.3      A department may resort to this form of training, either locally or overseas, through the grant of:           

a)  full or partial Government sponsorship to public officers and persons selected for appointment in the Public Service;

b)  partial Government sponsorship to officers who are awarded scholarships or bursaries by foreign Governments, international bodies and organisations after direct and outright nomination by the department or after selection limited only to serving officers;

c)  facilities of study leave (paid or unpaid) or time-off to individual officers who on their personal initiative, follow courses either locally or overseas.  

4.2         Authority to grant Sponsorships, Paid and Unpaid Study Leave           

4.2.1      Before officers are allowed to attend local or overseas courses for periods of up to and including one academic year, whether on paid or unpaid study leave, the necessary prior approval of the Permanent Secretary of the respective ministry, should be obtained.  Such authority may be granted subject to the availability of funds under the department’s vote,  as well as according to the needs and exigencies of the department concerned and the Public Service, in general.  

4.2.2      Officials granted sponsorship to attend degree/diploma courses should be selected through a service-wide or Ministry/Department selection process following the issue of a call for applications.   In the case of sponsored courses extending beyond one academic year, prior approval from the SDO should be sought.

4.3         Study Leave - General Guidelines

The following guidelines are to be observed in the granting of study leave:

a)   paid and/or unpaid study leave may only be granted to an officer who has completed at least one year’s service; 

b)   paid study leave to officers who have less than one year service may only be granted:

          (i) to newly-recruited officers when the qualification obtainable after successful completion of the course is tied to an appointment and

          (ii) to officers who are selected to follow specific training programmes which had been previously identified by the Ministry/Department prior to their engagement;

            c)   serving officers who are granted paid study leave may be considered for appointment during the period of the approved paid study leave;

    d)   serving officers on unpaid study leave will only be eligible for an appointment if:

• the officer resumes duties: in this case the officer will not be granted further unpaid study leave before the lapse of one year from the date of resumption of duties;

• the appointment will not prejudice the chances for appointment of other contestants for the post and the studies are of benefit to the service; and

•  the effective date of appointment and resultant seniority will be the date when the officer resumes regular duties.

4.4         Service Obligation 

4.4.1    When officers attend courses of study which involve the expenditure of public funds in any form (including the payment of salary), they are required to sign an undertaking binding themselves to serve their Ministry/Department for a specific term as indicated at paragraph 3 of Appendix III to this Manual. Whatever the duration of the course, however, the total period for which officers are bound for one particular course, should not exceed five years.  The undertaking is to be in the form shown at Appendix I to this Manual.  If the course of study leads to the acquisition of academic qualifications, or is judged to involve a considerable expense, officers will also be required to either enter into a formal act of hypothecation with their Ministry/Department in guarantee of fulfilment of the undertaking, or provide for the issue of a bank guarantee in favour of the Ministry/Department. 

4.4.2      Officers taking up a course of training which is a pre-requisite for appointment are normally required, in terms of the relative call for applications, to enter into a contract to serve their Ministry/Department and to hypothecate their property in guarantee of fulfilment of the terms of the contract.

4.4.3      Scholarship holders not in Government service who are granted a scholarship following which no appointment is envisaged, should sign the Form of Undertaking shown at Appendix II to this manual.

4.4.4      Officers who throughout their service career benefit from more than one scholarship are to serve their obligations in strict chronological order and in accordance with the date of the signing of the relative undertaking and/or deed.

4.5         Rules Governing Sponsorships

4.5.1      The rules governing the award of sponsorships are at Appendix III to this manual. Every person signing an undertaking as contemplated in sub-paragraph 4.4 above is to be made fully aware of these rules which he/she is required to sign and retain a copy thereof. 

4.5.2      These arrangements should be strictly adhered to by Heads of Department in order to ascertain that the conditions for the training are standardised and all public officers are fairly treated, irrespective of their grade and place of work.

4.5.3      Heads of Department are to keep the following points in mind in awarding sponsorships to follow courses of training:

a)   utmost care should be taken in the selection of the awardees, in order to minimise the chances of failure;

b)   undertakings/agreements must be signed before the persons commence their studies or training and/or proceed abroad;

c)   immediately on failing to successfully complete the prescribed course, the sponsoring department should issue a formal claim for refund; the departmental official concerned with this process will be held personally responsible for any loss to Government funds;

d)   where legal action is indicated, prompt steps are to be taken by the respective departments through their legal office or the Office of the Attorney General, as applicable, without needless recourse to the Office of the Prime Minister or the Ministry of Finance for agreement to such line of action.

4.5.4      A sponsored officer whose course is terminated or suspended or who fails to serve his/her Ministry/Department as he/she has bound himself/herself to do, may be required to refund all or any part of the disbursements made to him/her or on his/her behalf.

4.6          Discontinuation of Studies on Grounds of Ill-Health

4.6.1     Courses of Study abroad

Every candidate undertaking a course of studies abroad is to report any physical or mental illness which makes it impossible for him/her to continue with his/her studies to the Embassy of Malta, High Commission or Consulate in the country where he/she is staying. The Malta representative will then engage a doctor to examine and report on the candidate's state of health. In those countries where Malta has no resident diplomatic representation a candidate falling sick and having to abandon his/her course is to bring back with him/her to Malta a medical certificate from a qualified medical practitioner indicating why he/she is unable to continue with his/her studies. Any such certificate should be authenticated by the appropriate authorities in the country in question. Unless such a certificate is produced, no consideration can be given to any request for abatement of the amount due to be refunded.

4.6.2      Local courses of study 

When a candidate undergoing a course of study locally is unable to continue with his/her studies because of any physical or mental illness, he/she is to be referred for examination to the Director General, Health Division who will report on the candidate's state of health. Consideration of any request for abatement of the amount due to be refunded will only be given where an official certificate of ill-health is produced.

4.7         Doctorate and Post-Doctoral Studies      

4.7.1      The grant of long-term paid study leave to officers who intend to follow courses and undertake research leading to doctorate and post-doctoral qualifications should be approved only if the need to follow this level of studies is identified by Government.  In this case, the officers who could benefit from paid study leave should be selected through a service-wide or Ministry/Department selection process and after the issue of a call for applications.   Prior approval from the SDO should also be obtained. 

4.7.2      The grant of paid study leave for short periods not exceeding a total of two months in one calendar year, may be approved subject to the general conditions for the grant of this type of study leave as specified at paragraphs 5.4 and 6.4.

4.7.3      On the other hand, officers who wish to undertake doctorate or post-doctoral studies and research on their own initiative, may be granted unpaid study leave for the duration of their studies.   The grant of unpaid study leave for this purpose is strictly governed by the conditions set out at paragraph 5.2.1.

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