Valletta will be representing the whole of Malta when it submits its bid to become the European Capital of Culture in 2018. It is to the credit of all local councils that they have agreed to a common application being made on behalf of Malta. Although it has not been officially nominated, it is also an implicit recognition that the historic capital of Malta should deservedly carry this designation.
In less than seven years’ time, and for a period lasting 12 months, Malta, together with The Netherlands, will enjoy the privilege of providing the European Capital of Culture. It will join Paris, Athens, Florence, Prague, Madrid and the many other major cities that have been nominated as European Capitals of Culture over the last 25 years in the honour of promoting the role it has played in European culture, its links with Europe and its European identity.
Becoming the European Capital of Culture provides a splendid opportunity, and challenge, for Malta to derive considerable cultural, social and economic benefits and to act as a catalyst for regenerating the cultural heritage and fostering the country’s arts, culture and traditions. It goes without saying that the opportunities for every aspect of tourism to benefit are huge.
The criteria established for Malta becoming the European Capital of Culture will require the country to encourage cooperation between Maltese artists and cultural stakeholders and other European Union countries. Malta will need to highlight, through its participation, the riches of cultural diversity in Europe and to bring to the fore the aspects of European culture that are common to all of Europe.
Malta is uniquely well placed to do this. Its 7,000-year-old Euro-Mediterranean history, its artistic, religious and other traditions are a vibrant mirror of the richness and variety of Europe and raise awareness of the common history binding Europe together, which lies at the heart of the concept underlying the European Capital of Culture.
Being awarded the designation will not only necessitate considerable capital investment but also meticulous preparation and planning. It will require a strong central organisation and direction to bring together the disparate and, very often, competing players in the Maltese cultural field – from NGOs to band clubs, local councils to government ministries. Ensuring the right mix of domestic and international events and, most importantly, that they are of the right professional calibre, will be crucial. This will need a clear vision of what the country wants to achieve and what the theme of its Capital of Culture for the year is to be. In handling this exciting project, only the best will do.
As to infrastructure and capital expenditure, in a sense this has thankfully already begun. What is happening now in Valletta with the roads, St George’s Square, the City Gate project, including the bus terminus, are exciting and long overdue. They are essential to the success of what happens in seven years’ time. European funding is going towards the neglected fortifications and elsewhere. But that still leaves major cultural heritage projects – such as Fort St Elmo and Fort St Angelo – still to come and it is inconceivable these should not form part of the Capital of Culture project.
Malta’s designation as the European Capital of Culture provides a most exciting opportunity for the country to redeem years of neglect in the cultural and artistic field to the benefit of the whole of Malta. But it will take focused and well-led organisational skills and funding resources to make it happen successfully.