From Mr M. Farrugia

On Friday 13 May, Act V of 2005 was published in the Malta Government Gazette. It is an Act that will restructure the National Archives of Malta to make it a modem institution capable of managing records and archives according to today's needs. The Committee of the Friends of the National Archives welcomes such a historic step, and compliments Minister Louis Galea for such an achievement, notwithstanding the various difficulties that had to be overcome.

The new Act presents the sector with a golden opportunity to move forward. For the first time ever the government allocated a separate financial vote for the National Archives. Although it is a very minimal sum, it shows that there is acknowledgement for the valuable work the National Archives does on a national level.

We would like to thank all Members of Parliament who took an active part in the discussion on this new law. Their contribution helped in making the Bill better augurs well for the future. We also acknowledge the invaluable work of the present head of the National Archives Charles Farrugia who was the driving force behind this reform. All members of the Friends’ committee gave a helping hand with active participation in lengthy meetings, and also during parliamentary sessions in the committee stage. All these efforts were crowned with a modern archives legislation that will give the sector the tools for decades to come.

We encourage Dr Galea to keep up the good work, and pass on to the implementation of the new legislation so that our National Archives acquire the important position it rightly deserves.

Max Farrugia

President – Friends of the National Archives