It is late Sunday afternoon. I am at a theatre in Gozo watching a local production. During the intermission I glance at my mobile phone and see that the queue for the ferry is alarmingly long. The intermission comes to an end and I try not to think of the long wait that awaits me afterwards but I do not succeed to manage the second part completely. In fact, I spend two hours waiting just to get on a ferry.
A journey which I started at 7pm took four hours to complete. You might say that this is a one-off incident but long waits such as this one have become the norm at the end of every weekend due to the mild weather and the various incentives to visit Gozo during the low season.
However, such incentives have not been accompanied with a more efficient ferry service. This is a feeling which frequent commuters all share.
This brings us to the issue of better accessibility and connectivity between the two islands. In this era of modern technology which makes the globe a virtual village, to have an island suffering from double insularity is unrealistic and not viable.
The number of registered voters is of more than 30,000 but the number of people who live in Gozo during the week decreases by half. The main reasons are work and study opportunities on the larger island. This is leading to many Gozitan youths opting to put down roots in Malta because their careers make a commute of at least three hours a day, if everything is on schedule, impossible and something which decreases close to nil the time available for family and other interests.
The most feasible and long-term solution possible is that of a permanent link with the mainland
The absence of a younger generation on this island is leading to an increasingly ageing population, making Gozo a ‘retirement island’.
What are the solutions to decrease such an exodus? A solution which has been proposed various times is that of a fast-ferry service. However, many experts see such service as being a very short-term solution for a problem which is going to remain there and will increase in proportion over time.
An analogy which comes to mind given my medical background is like having an infection and treating just the symptoms (and not to a full extent) and not the cause. The Gozitan population is still waiting for a viable and long-term solution to halt the sharp decline in people who actually live on the island on a permanent basis.
The most feasible and long-term solution possible is that of permanent link with the mainland. This possibility was first mentioned over 40 years ago at the behest of the Gozo Civic Council, when the number of Gozitan students seeking tertiary education was nowhere as it is today.
The issue was put on the backburner for decades until several years ago, when under a previous administration, it was raised again together with feasibility studies, both geological and socio-economic in nature. A change in government brought also the possibility of a bridge as a permanent link. However, after feasibility studies were carried out, such an option proved to be unfeasible.
The possibility of the two main islands being permanently linked brings with it numerous opinions in favour and against. One of the main arguments against is that Gozo would lose its quaint charm. However, there are various villages in Malta, which even though they are just a few kilometres away from bustling commercial centres, still have retained their quieter way of life.
If appropriate measures are taken by the authorities, such a problem would be kept to a minimum and the economic return would be greater.
Other islands over the world have been connected to the mainland with a permanent link. One such example is Prince Edward Island which is connected to mainland Canada by a bridge. This case study is highlighted in Godfrey Baldacchino’s Island Life in which the implications of a permanent link on an island’s economy, society, culture and policy were studied.
Other islands with a permanent link, such as Skye connected to mainland Scotland and islands off the west coast of France were taken into account and their different scenarios discussed. Cases in which a permanent link was not constructed, such as in the case of the islands off the Irish coast were discussed.
The main conclusion was that in order for an island community to continue thriving, some sort of permanent link must be made to the mainland.
In conclusion, I would like to highlight the pressing need for concrete action to be taken. We must remember that we are one nation, and if a part of this nation thrives, the whole nation will benefit. We cannot continue pushing this problem to the back and then realise that action needs to be taken when Gozo becomes a deserted island, the same as what happened to Comino several decades ago.
Mariella Mercieca is a Gozitan pharmacist residing in Malta.