An official delegation headed by Rousset mayor Jean-Louis Canal (who is also a councillor in the regional council of Provence) have visited Malta to sign the twinning agreement between Kirkop and Rousset (in the south of France, next to Aix-en-Provence.)
Both Kirkop and Rousset are rural villages with an industrial area that hosts ST Microelectronics. ST employees from Malta who attend training in the Rousset plant came up with the idea to twin the two villages. Then deputy mayor Christian Gauci began working on the twinning project two years ago, with his counterpart in Rousset – Elisabeth Bégé.
To commemorate the occasion, an olive tree presented by Rousset during Kirkop’s official visit to Rousset last April was planted in a Kirkop public garden, named “Rousset Garden” in honour of the twinning agreement.
In his address, Mr Canal stated that the olive tree was a very important symbol in Provence and the region of Cote d’Azur, symbolising peace, health and prosperity. Much work had been put into this twinning project over the two years by both sides. Mr Gauci and Ms Bégé had political responsibility for the project, and the technical and administrative formalities were dealt with by Norbert Bernard (president of the Twinning Committee in Rousset) and Claude J.M. Galea (executive secretary for Kirkop). Mr Canal thanked all the people who had enthusiastically dedicated their time and efforts to make the project a reality and expressed the hope that the same enthusiasm will guide initiatives from the citizens of both partners to nurture and develop this twinning in the future.
Kirkop mayor Mario Salerno pointed out that the Rousset citizens’ character is very similar to that of the Maltese. “They are warm-hearted, gentle and generous people, just like us, and people we may truly consider as our brothers and sisters”, he said. Mr Salerno gave details of future joint projects being discussed during the Rousset delegation’s visit to Malta. The agreement covers all aspects of inter-community life in the twinned partners, focusing on cultural and social affairs, the environment, education, recreational sport, tourism, industry, economic activity, small enterprises, municipal management, administration and services, and the mutual exchange of experience and the promotion of achievements and best practices in these areas.
HE Patrick Chrismant – former French Ambassador to Malta – actively supported this initiative from its inception and, through the French Cultural Councillor Anne-Louise Debeussher, assisted Kirkop local council to run the first-ever Alliance Française French language courses in Kirkop. Ms Debeussher and Ms Claire Budonyi – First Councillor with the French Embassy to Malta – were both present at the ceremony.