Malta International Airport plc today launched a foundation entrusted with the responsibility to invest in projects aimed at improving Malta's tourism product.

The Malta Airport Foundation is part of the company's strategic decision to use its corporate responsibility funds to contribute more directly to the tourism industry by investing in Malta's heritage and environment.

"We want to invest in cultural, touristic and environmental projects that would help enhance the face of Malta. We want to improve the tourism product while giving back to the local community in a way that ties in with our values more clearly," said Malta International Airport CEO Markus Klaushofer during the foundation's official launch in Sliema.

Malta International Airport plc will also be the first in Malta to follow one of the world's most prevalent and comprehensive reporting frameworks, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), when it comes to sustainability reporting. This will ensure that any economical, social and environmental impacts are measured, reported and audited on a yearly basis, and that the company's performance is improved in a sustainable manner every subsequent year.

Fredrick Mifsud Bonnici was appointed Chairman of the Malta Airport Foundation who together with Simone Mizzi and Frank Salt, as members of the Foundation's Board of Administrators, will be managing the assets and affairs of the foundation independent of the airport and for the benefit of tourists and Maltese citizens.

"Each one of the board of administrators brings with them their own experience and expertise, and this will mean good governance, environmental sensitivity and commercial acumen so that projects embarked on are sustainable and valuable to the country," added Mr Klaushofer.

The foundation's first project will see the restoration and conservation of the Wied iż-Żurrieq watchtower, also known as Torri Xutu, through an investment of €130,000.

"This 17th Century coastal tower is located in a prime touristic destination in the southwest of Malta, forming part of the airport's neighbourhood, an area within close proximity to the Neolithic temples of Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra and also the Blue Grotto. We are sure the work will be deeply appreciated by tourists and locals alike, once it is open for all to enjoy," said Mr Mifsud Bonnici.

Restoration works on the tower should last two years and the tower should be open to the public in 2017.