€50 million investment in cultural projects

Deputy Prime Minister Louis Grech today announced the allocation of €50 million in funding for cultural projects. In total, ten projects will be substantially funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for 2014-2020.

Grech gave details about the ten approved projects that will see investments in the country’s natural and cultural assets including the rehabilitation and restoration of the Grandmasters’ Palace, the conversion of Auberge D’Italie into the new national fine arts museum (MUŻA), and the restoration of the Notarial Archives.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that the government’s vision is to  invest in a focused and balanced way in the country’s economic, environmental, social and cultural development.  He said that today’s announcement is a clear indication that this government is committed to preserve and enhance Malta’s cultural assets.

Ian Borg, Parliamentary Secretary for EU Funds, highlighted projects with an environmental perspective such as investments at Chadwick Lakes, the installation of a new ventilation and acclimatisation system of the Manoel theatre, and the further enhancing of the Gozo Museum project. Other projects include Carnival Village, which will definitely further benefit and expand the ever-growing tourism industry. 

Borg underlined the broad spectrum of the projects that will benefit from EU funding and that these compliment each other. He added that these projects will restore and revive our historical heritage and other environmental sites which currently may find themselves in a poor depleted state.

While thanking the Managing Authority for the ERDF 2014-2020 and the various Ministries and entities that participated in the selection process, Borg said that together with the respective Project Leaders he will soon be visiting these projects and augured that the beneficiary organisations will start work in earnest to ensure proper implementation in line with agreed time-frames.