Editorial

It has always been a fact that because Malta is an island, many times, the Maltese, whether we like it or not, have had to be linguistic wizards. In the remote past it was because the island's colonial rulers spoke French, Spanish or Italian. Then it was trade that, along with being an integral part of the British Empire, dictated that English should be our lingua franca, which, up to a certain extent, it still is.

Four decades after independence and Malta finds itself at the crossroads as a prime tourist destination, a well-known centre for English language schools and with an economy that, with the establishment of projects like SmartCity, requires multilingual literacy at many social levels. Our very survival heavily depends on how well we can express ourselves.

The recently-published results of the 2005 Census of Population and Housing shows that the illiteracy rate mercifully dropped by 28.3 per cent over the past 10 years; females are still more literate than males. The gap is narrowing, as in 1995 the male literacy percentage was 87.4 per cent and it now stands at 91.7 per cent. The female literacy percentage in 2005 was 93.9 per cent, as against 90 per cent in 1995.

The literacy percentages do not specify language, at least from what has been published so far. However, the statistics have also broken down the languages involved with some telling results. Maltese remains the most spoken language in the home; a staggering 90.2 per cent, as opposed to a mere six per cent who said they spoke English at home, with three per cent admitting they use more than one language. Results also showed that in the northern districts, English was more widely used.

There is no way of checking up - bar a test - on the levels of excellence and proficiency in the languages used, especially when the increase in Maltese nationals able to express themselves in German, French, Arabic and Italian are staggeringly high.

The question thus prompts itself: What weight should be given to such results?

Writing elsewhere in this issue, the honorary chairman of the Malta Library and Information Association, Robert Mizzi, raises a similar point: "While it is clear that the Census 2005 gives an indication, the results concerning literacy must be taken as a starting point". Mr Mizzi deems it necessary that a National Adult Literacy Survey is held. There is everything to gain and nothing to lose in conducting such a study and, therefore, Mr Mizzi's suggestion deserves all-round support.

Likewise, his passionate appeal to involve libraries in literacy education makes a lot of sense.

Having said that, the results of the census in terms of languages are encouraging. What with Cable TV and internet access, English is undoubtedly the world leader in as far as language goes. Its quality, even there, is debatable; however it has become imperative that one uses English for basic information at any level in these areas. This is why in today's world "real" literacy in English is of paramount importance.

The low figure for families who speak English in the home is an eye-opener. English, which lies at par along with Maltese as the country's national language, is a formidable gateway to the world. This is not about being an anglophile. This is about looking ahead and attaining the vision this government, and indeed the opposition, have for the country to succeed in such areas as information technology and financial services where communication - good communication in every sense - is the ultimate power.