Mario Buhagiar writes:

The passing away of Salvino Busuttil has left a cultural void that is difficult to fill.

He was not only a leading economist who put the teaching of economics at the University on a sounder foundation. He was also a brilliant academic who, together with the late Fr Peter Serracino Inglott, was a key player, often under difficult circumstances, in restructuring the University and securing for it the respected international profile it now enjoys.

Busuttil will also be remembered for his service to Malta as Ambassador to France, in which capacity he was instrumental in securing enriching Franco-Maltese cultural protocols.

He was also the founder of the Fondation de Malte, an international NGO dedicated to cultural affairs, which has been responsible for the publication of important research works focusing primarily on Franco- Maltese historical relations.

Among his many other cultural initiatives was his support to Mdina Cathedral Museum, which benefitted greatly from his advice and encouragement.

Culture in Malta is very much the poorer by his loss.