Eco-Gozo could well prove to be the second buzzword after Smart City. Both babies could end up with an unknown father and share the fate of so many other babies in Malta.

Eco-Gozo will remain on paper if we fail to win over the support of the whole country for this concept. The nation will have to make the fundamental choice between Gozo as an eco island and Gozo as a mini-Malta. We are speedily heading towards the latter spoiling not only what remains of the Gozitan countryside, but also the way of life that makes Gozo so distinct.

There is no such thing as a compromise between the two concepts. One cannot have half eco and half mini-Malta combined together. If we wish to sell eco, then there must be eco inside the Gozo bottle and not an adulterated mixture. Malta, with all its bad planning, will always retain Mdina and Valletta as stellar divergences. But an overdeveloped Gozo would have nothing more to offer than concrete blocks.

During the war Gozo was in many ways essential for the survival of Malta and its war-torn inhabitants who sought refuge in Gozo. Likewise the eco-Gozo concept should underline a specific role for Gozo that offers an extensive pastoral countryside and a pristine coastline for the main island’s inhabitants.

In the grinding economic realities of everyday life, Gozitans will not transform Gozo into an eco island just for the fun of it. They will expect tangible benefits. The eco-Gozo concept must translate into jobs and prosperity. This could only be achieved if the whole country is ready to invest in this concept and claim ownership.

Localities, NGOs, business and other stakeholders should sit together under expert leadership to bring this idea forward. There will be no gain without pain. The sooner we realise that there is no real alternative to eco-Gozo, the sooner we’ll face our future in a mature and wholesome way.

Agnes Debono

Kercem