The Archdiocese of Malta has been awarded €2.2 million in EU funds for the
conservation, protection and promotion of ecclesiastical cultural heritage.

The archives of the Archbishop’s Curia and 15 parishes will benefit from the funds over a three-year period.

The funds were granted after an application by the Foundation for Cultural Heritage of the Archdiocese of Malta, to the Project Selection Committee for the allocation of EU funds (2014 – 2020).

The parishes which will benefit from the funds, for the restoration of historical
buildings are: Attard, Balzan, Birkirkara (St Helen), Birkirkara (St Mary), Dingli, Gharghur, Marsaxlokk, Mdina, Mgarr, Mellieħa, Mosta (including Bidnija), Naxxar, Paola (Christ the King), Rabat, and Tarxien.

A formal letter was presented by Aaron Farrugia, Parliamentary Secretary for EU funds to Mr Michael Pace Ross, chairperson of the Foundation for Cultural Heritage of the Archdiocese of Malta.

The €2.2 million granted to the Church are part of a €23 million fund announced earlier this month under the European Regional Development Fund.

The fund will support 19 cultural organisations and local councils on projects ranging from restorations of heritage buildings to new museums and cultural or artistic initiatives.

The projects will include a new Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre at Xrobb l-Għaġin 
set up by Nature Trust on the site of the former Deutsche Welle relay
station.

The €1.9 million centre will also be able to host animals confiscated by the
authorities and for breeding endangered species, as well as having the capacity to serve as an emergency base in the eventuality of an oil spill or other
environmental disaster.

Among the other projects that will benefit are restoration works by Din L-Art Ħelwa and Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna of several coastal watchtowers built by the Knights of St John, the extension and refurbishment of the St John’s Co-Cathedral Museum, and the restoration of St Paul’s Anglican Pro-Cathedral in Valletta.

The funds will also support the creation of Malta’s first fireworks museum,
heritage projects showcasing the old railway in Attard and Birkirkara and the restoration of the Mtarfa Clock Tower.

Environmental projects will be carried out by the Malta Red Cross and the OASI
Foundation, both of which will be installing solar panels, as well as St Monica
Schools.