The Maltese excel in moaning: Give them a state-of-the-art hospital and in no time they are apt to find faults in it. This ongoing fault-finding exercise is an ingrained habit, one that is unlikely to wear off in our generation, or the next! Even so, it would not be out of place if, even for a brief moment, we stop and count our blessings in the hope that prospects will be better in this new year. When we talk of prospects, we usually have wealth in mind but that is secondary next to so many other things we usually take for granted, such as good health, until we lose any of them.

Visitors to Malta often find the island far too tacky for their taste and in a good number of places the environment does indeed deserve that adjective. But at the same time they often wonder how such a small island could generate so much economic activity, more so when we do not have any natural revenue-earning resources. Those culturally inclined wonder, too, at the marvels of our heritage.

Wise political leadership has rooted out violence as a political weapon, making the political environment healthier than it has been for many, many years. Politics remains keen, but that is only natural in such a vibrant democracy as ours. There is greater political maturity, with the number of uncommitted voters seen to be rising steadily. This development forces the political parties and politicians to be more circumspect at election time.

The island has not been short of challenges and the economic environment abroad may present even stiffer ones in Malta's struggle to improve the standard of living. However, despite its smallness and the many difficulties this often creates, it managed to get its act together insofar as government finances are concerned and is also succeeding in laying the groundwork for the development of an information and communication technology sector. As labour-intensive manufacturing gives way to new forms of economic activity, the island's economic landscape changes, opening new job opportunities for young people joining the labour market for the first time.

Complaints of over-development show increasing sensitiveness to the protection of the island's environment. This alertness to anything that can damage the physical landscape would need to be kept up to avoid, as much as possible, further disfigurement.

Far too many idyllic places have been ruined by over-development since the boom times of the 1960s. While an embargo on development would be unwise, it would be counter-productive to destroy any of the few remaining pristine areas.

The challenges involved in such a commitment are great, but pride in all that that makes Malta what it is should be a good guiding light to the island's development planners. The good that has been done to the physical environment may not altogether balance the disfigurement in certain places but it should not be ignored either. Great improvement is taking place all the time in the road network and a number of public places are being made more attractive.

Away from ethnic and political conflicts in other parts of the world, and from the hunger and uncertainties so many other people are suffering today, Malta has good reason to count its blessings. The progress made will not stop people from moaning, and it is unlikely that the way ahead will be trouble free either. It never is. But if the past can be taken as a yardstick, the future should be brighter. Counting our blessings helps put matters in perspective.