A newly-established Tourism Ministry unit will be tasked with studying, protecting and preserving Malta's underwater cultural heritage, Minister Konrad Mizzi said this morning.

The body, which Dr Mizzi announced during the Our Ocean conference being held in Malta, will have a yearly budget of €1.6 million.

Dr Mizzi said the body would also be responsible for managing access to underwater cultural heritage sites as well as promoting public awareness of the value of such sites.

He said that protecting hitherto unknown cultural resources would have both an ecological and economic benefit to the country, fostering sea sustainability and creating new diving sites around the Maltese islands.

The Our Ocean conference brings together political leaders from around the globe to discuss ways of cleaning and protecting the world's seas.

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