Summits earn Malta €550 million worth of publicity

In a bid to counter criticism on the success of the Valletta Summit on Migration and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), government said that Malta got the equivalent of €550 million worth of publicity.

The two events, which cost the taxpayer some €12 million, came under a barrage of criticism especially for failing to come up with tangible solutions to the challenges posed by migration and climate change.

But government commissioned international advertising agency M&C Saatchi to quantify the effectiveness of the events in terms of exposure.

“The global media value Malta gained out of organising the Valletta Summit on Migration and was approximately €550 million,” it said.

In a statement issued on Saturday, government explained that the study examined the total number of mentions of the two events.

“The Valletta Summit had a total of 7,008 mentions which adds to a total Ad Value equivalent of €179,787,195. CHOGM was mentioned 12,333 times for a total Ad Value equivalent of €369,103,710.”

Justifying the organization of the two events, government said “the returns from global media exposure confirms that the publicity Malta received around the world and in regions which we never reach through marketing makes the investment an important one for Malta.”

Full accounts of the Valletta Summit and CHOGM will be presented to the Prime Minister and made public as soon as an independent audit is concluded in the next few months.

“The country has also benefitted from the economic activity which both summits generated as thousands of people gathered in Malta to participate in these global events,” the statement added.

Aneil Bedi from M&C Saatchi, said that the study was conducted according to market standards and best practices as used for brands across the world.

“The exposure, value and credibility the country gained out of the Valletta Summit and CHOGM is very difficult to achieve and cannot be bought through traditional advertising alone,” Bedi said.