Castille Square in Valletta is set for a €30,000 embellishment, which will include the national monument dedicated to former Prime Minister Dom Mintoff.

An Infrastructure Ministry spokeswoman told Times of Malta that the project would be completed later this year as part of the celebrations to mark a number of anniversaries related to Malta’s political history.

Last December the government unveiled maquettes for three statues of former Presidents Guido de Marco and Ċensu Tabone, as well as former Prime Minister Dom Mintoff, following a call for proposals.

The selected maquette of Prof. de Marco was that of sculptor Aaron Camilleri Cauchi, while those of Mr Mintoff and Dr Tabone were of another prominent sculptor bearing the same surname, Alfred Cauchi.

The spokeswoman explained that Mintoff’s monument will be located by the bastion wall in Castille Square, opposite the Prime Minister’s Office.

The site chosen for Prof. de Marco’s monument is in front of the law courts while that dedicated to Dr Tabone will be positioned in his hometown of St Julian’s. The upgrading of Castille Square will also include measures for better traffic management but the trees that now surround the statue of Manuel Dimech, which is situated in the centre of the roundabout, will have to be uprooted and planted elsewhere.

Apart from the 50th anniversary of Malta’s Independence, 2014 will also mark the 10th anniversary of Malta’s accession to the EU and 40 years since the island became a republic.