Youth and culture ministry under-funded but enthusiastic - minister

The Ministry for Youth and the Arts was greatly underfunded although a lot of enthusiasm was being shown by the sectors falling within it, Minister Jesmond Mugliett said on Friday.

He was speaking during the budget debate on his ministry's financial estimates in parliament.

Mr Mugliett said that EU membership would be bringing about a series of new opportunities for young people, who would no longer have to pay high fees for participation in educational programmes, youth exchanges and other activities held by the EU.

The minister said the Youth Empowerment Centre which had been set up in Birkirkara was to be extended to other localities including Victoria.

Information centres were to be set up with Sedqa with whom youth at risk programmes were also to be organised. This programme would involve professionals who would go to entertainment centres giving information to people with drug, alcohol, unemployment, prostitution and other problems.

Unemployment among youths was a problem but this was a result of several factors, Mr Mugliett said. The fact that the government had reduced the number of people in the civil service meant a lack of job creation in particular sectors. This was, however, a particular situation which should not last long.

There were incentives in the budget for job creation, the technology fund being one example.

Turning to sports, he said, this was an educational tool which improved the well-being of the community.

This year was a special one for sports in Malta: the sports law had been enacted, the Cottonera sports complex was inaugurated, the Small Nations Games were held, and there were successes in other sports outside the games.

Referring to questions by Carmelo Abela (MLP), Mr Mugliett said it was the sports law itself which provided that the anti-doping advisory committee should be independent from the sports council and hence was answerable to the ministry. This committee included the representation of all stakeholders.

The council, Mr Mugliett said, included a representative from Gozo. He was preoccupied that the sports culture in Gozo was less strong than in Malta.

Referring to comments that the success of the games was not exploited enough, Mr Mugliett said that that had been a period of development for Malta which led the country to a certain point. It could now look ahead and the difficult period which followed the games had probably been overcome. Referring to the resignations of Michael Aquilina and Pippo Psaila, Mr Mugliett said Mr Aquilina resigned because he felt frustrated due to delays in the operations of the council while Mr Psaila resigned because he did not agree with the Sports Act. Although he respected the decision, he did not agree with Mr Psaila.

Mr Mugliett said that although the budget for sports had been increased, the recurrent expenditure was only 0.12 per cent of total recurrent expenditure. This, he agreed, was too low.

Mr Mugliett said the budget for sports was more than the Lm420,000 provided in the estimates. There would be at least another Lm200,000 from the lotteries fund and there would be other funds from the rental of facilities. Replying to a question by the opposition, Mr Mugliett said the cost of the Cottonera Complex was Lm2.4 million.

He said the conclusion of work on another sports complex at Karwija was expected to be completed in 2005. Mr Mugliett said he would also like to see a specialised school for sport. The time for it had not yet come and one had to find a locality and funds. But after consolidating the new structures which were being set up, one could start considering its setting up.

Turning to art, he said it was very rare that different organisations worked together, something his ministry was trying to rectify. There was need to make better utilisation of theatres and activities put up in Malta, for example, could be repeated in Gozo and vice-versa.

A problem that was being met was that when organisations applied for funds for particular projects, they had to provide complementary funding and because of under-funding, this was not always possible.

He pointed out that maintenance work was being carried out on the Manoel Theatre and at the Mediterranean Conference Centre and this was to continue throughout next year.

Turning to cultural heritage, Mr Mugliett said that the ministry was to continue with the process of formulating an updated cultural policy. The ministry was also to continue consolidating organisations such as Heritage Malta, and the Superintendence of National Heritage would be strengthened.

He said he would like to see the Malta Restoration Centre carrying out more restoration work. A board to award warrants to restorers was to be set up.

Another priority of his ministry, he said, was to be efficient in the exploitation of structural funds for projects such as the Heritage Park near Mnajdra. An international design competition for the park had been launched and the results would be announced in April.

He referred to assistance by the private sector saying that HSBC had donated a painting and funds for the restoration of the Fine Arts Museum, and BOV had been involved in a project at the Hal Tarxien temples for the past 10 years.

But more attention also had to be given to smaller entities such as the Maritime Museum, the Inquisitors' Palace and the War Museum. There was also need for more work in the area of excavations.

Another priority was to raise attendance at museums. Lm900,000 were currently generated from this source but this did not reflect Malta's potential. There had to be innovative means of attracting people. Why should museums close at 5 p.m. on Sundays, for example?

The ministry, he said, was following up an enquiry by foreign entities to set up exhibitions on the Maltese cultural heritage overseas. These entities included the Federal Museum of Germany and the Arts Services International in the USA.

Nationalist MP David Agius had called for consideration of a proposal for voting age to be lowered to 16 instead of 18 - a proposal which is currently also under discussion in the UK.

Such a measure, he said, would reflect greater confidence in young people, and also encourage them to participate more fully in politics and decision-making.

Mr Agius was speaking during the budget debate on the Ministry of Youth and Culture on Friday.

He observed that according to a sociological study by Professor Anthony Abela, Maltese youths were less dependent on their parents than foreigners since they had a source of income from a young age. They were also among the heaviest users of computers and mobile phones.

The lifestyle and views of a section of young people was nonetheless a cause of concern as they sought easy money and gave high priority to entertainment, often spending without proper restraint.

However, he also wanted to underline the good elements in young people, as shown, for example, in the Kerygma volleyball marathon.

Turning to culture, Mr Agius welcomed the government's plans for a visitors' centre to be built near Hagar Qim and Mnajdra and insisted that any actions at or around the temples should not damage the remains.

There as need to encourage more Maltese to visit historical and cultural sites and also participate in sports.

Malta needed to diversify sports events. He felt that well-known personalities in the various disciplines should be encouraged to give some of their time to encourage more youngsters to try their hand in sports. There also needed to be stronger emphasis on sports nurseries.

Mr Agius said he hoped that funds from public lotto would continue to be channelled to sports even when the management of lotto was transferred to a private company.