New national cultural policy

I refer to the letter by Alfred Camilleri (The Sunday Times, August 2).

The Malta Council for Culture and the Arts acknowledges the fact that opportunities abroad, such as the Venice Biennale, are ideal for Maltese artists to showcase their work on an international scale.

Malta's lack of participation in the Venice Biennale is a lacuna which has been identified and is now being dealt with by executives of the MCCA. Mobility of cultural collections, works of art and artists are key areas where public and private investment will be developed by means of the new National Cultural Policy that will be launched in September.

The cultural policy itself will seek to address important issues regarding culture and the arts. These include the democratisation of culture, arts in education, the conservation and interpretation of cultural heritage and the creation of sustainable incentives among others.

Last Friday, the Culture Ministry launched a new arts fund to provide a stimulus for investment in local artists and their expression. It aims to support artists and arts organisations in fulfilling and realising their potential and in advancing their skills and level of professionalism, consequently con-tributing to strengthening local artistic practice and cultural development.

In the coming weeks, the MCCA will also be launching its new website which, among other features, will include an opportunities for artists section as well as an 'artist of the month' page with biographical notes, statements, images of artists' works and links to artists' web pages. Artists who would like to submit work for inclusion are asked to send an e-mail to info@maltaculture.com