Our culture is a construct of who we were, who we are now and who we shall be. We are sparing no effort to cultivate a cultural sector that is vibrant, accessible and sustainable.
First and foremost, we want to ensure an ever-stronger awareness of our culture as an intrinsic part of our identity. We want to open the doors of our heritage repositories and to exhibit more of our national collection in settings that facilitate understanding. The creation of a costume museum, for instance, will finally allow for a substantial part of our textile inheritance to be exhibited.
In parallel, we have also embarked on a flagship project that is structured on the concept of community curatorship: Muża will be groundbreaking for Malta not only because its exhibits will form part of a story, but also because this story itself will be narrated in terms of content by the community.
History and heritage are only two elements that make up our culture. In the contemporary scenario, we are seeking to cultivate an environment that not only enables audiences to enjoy cultural expression but that also encourages them to become active participants.
In order to achieve this, we need to eliminate barriers, starting from the very early years of childhood. The Culture Card together with the Manoel Theatre’s Toi Toi programme and St James Cavalier’s Żigużajg festival are excellent tools that can help realise these goals.
Such initiatives are undoubtedly also crucial for audience building. In this regard, we must further strive to ensure that culture enters our homes through broadcasting, not only via national television but also through private stations under their public service obligation. We believe that PBS has a national duty to ensure the democratisation of culture: in fact we are in the process of creating a cultural editor within the whole structure.
As part of our vision for the sector, we are also strengthening our public cultural organisations and streamlining their work to ensure that they each contribute to the creation of quality opportunities for our cultural and creative practitioners and organisations. The creation of the Culture Directorate was the first step towards implementing this vision.
Equally important is the reform we are undertaking in the relevant legislation to reflect a revamped Arts Council with two separate but related functions. The first is a focus on strategy in the management and administration of funding schemes and initiatives to support artists in their training, in the creation of projects; the second is a focus on the organisation of festivals aimed at showcasing local and foreign talent.
Ultimately we believe that culture is Malta’s strongest resource
This runs parallel with the efforts of St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity, Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, Manoel Theatre, Pjazza Teatru Rjal, and Żfin Malta (the newly-created national contemporary dance company), towards increased professionalisation of the sector and consequently augment its economic impact.
Latest figures from the Ministry for Finance show that the cultural and creative industries contribute five per cent to GDP, which is larger than the construction industry (four per cent of GDP) and close in size to the financial and insurance services industry (seven per cent of GDP).
A total of 3,308 enterprises are registered as engaged in activity related to the cultural and creative sector while over 10,000 people are economically active in the sector (full and part-time and self-employed).
Our vision in this regard is to ensure that the sector is provided with the necessary resources to reach its full potential. We are working hard in this direction, suffice it to say that an overall 25 per cent increase in funding for public culture and creative sector agencies and initiatives was allocated in the 2015 Budget when compared to the year before.
The total government investment in the sector for 2015 will be of €43 million, an increase of 52 per cent (€13.7 million) over the level of total government investment for 2012.
All this tallies with the vision for growth contained in the European Capital of Culture title that Valletta will hold in 2018. The government sees preparations for the ECoC title as an opportunity for Valletta and Malta in general to generate considerable cultural, social and economic benefits and to help foster urban regeneration, change the city’s image and raise its visibility and profile on an international scale.
Undoubtedly, the success of Valletta 2018 will be measurable in hindsight, depending not just on the success of the cultural events taking place throughout the year, but also, and most importantly, on the legacy, long-term benefits for people working in the sector and on public engagement with culture that will remain after 2018.
We are therefore seeking to strengthen our cultural infrastructure; the ongoing efforts for the creation of a design cluster at the Old Abattoir, a new cultural hub in Valletta and a contemporary carnival village in Marsa are three prime examples.
We are also working towards revitalising Valletta on both an architectural and social level. In this vision, the restoration of historical buildings, such as Palazzo Ferreria, goes hand-in-hand with the rehabilitation of Strait Street, the Suq tal-Belt and the Biċċerija area as a lively cultural and creative hub that is bustling with activity.
Ultimately, we believe that culture is Malta’s strongest resource.
This government acknowledges the crucial role that cultural awareness, participation and expression play in the development of an active, democratic and creative society both on an individual and collective level.
owen.bonnici@gov.mt
Owen Bonnici is Minister for Justice, Culture and Local Government.