He was inspecting one of the projects being undertaken by his ministry in Safi village centre.

The Public Works Department has been carrying out the embellishment of Safi’s square for the last three months, and work will probably be completed by the end of the week. Work will soon start in more villages, among which are Mqabba and Zurrieq as well as Mellieha.

The minister also confirmed a report published in The Malta Independent that the ministry is waiting for permission from Mepa to develop a promenade area on Wied Babu, leading up to Wied iz-Zurrieq.

In Safi, the concrete-slabbed parvis of St Paul’s church and St Mary’s chapel have been repaved with tal-Qawwi stone imported from Italy.

A number of benches have been provided and the surrounding pedestrian area paved.

Two walls that previously obstructed part of St Paul’s church have been demolished and reconstructed. The new line of the walls gives the church a more symmetrical look that is generally more pleasing to the eye, as the previous walls blocked the full view of the church. One of the walls was reconstructed using the stone from the previous one and has been fitted with two stone niches that will each house a statue.

The wall on the other side, adjacent to the Dominican Sisters convent, has been rebuilt in a rustic style. The electricity poles that were to the side of the church were removed and replaced with cables. The road opposite St Mary’s chapel has now been pedestrianised and paved with white Tal-Qawwi stone, while the two roads on the sides of the Domus Curialis building have been paved with concrete slabs.

In a short comment to the press, Mr Zammit said that this was another project carried out entirely with government workers, employed with the Public Works Department that formed part of the ministry.

“These workers are giving very satisfactory results while keeping within the budgets,” he said.

He concluded by pointing out that the general public must cooperate by keeping the place tidy and reporting any vandalism immediately.