“Sustainable development is one of the toughest challenges faced by governments both at a local and national level and striking the right balance between conservation and development is crucial for the welfare of present and future generations. This is especially so in Malta with its tiny surface area.”

Parliamentary Secretary for Local Government Stefan Buontempo made this statement while delivering the closing speech to the URBACT Info Day Malta, as part of the European Programme for Sustainable Urban Development, which took place at the Fortress Builders, Valletta.

In his speech, Dr Buontempo said that sustainable development was the main issue discussed in this year’s Commonwealth Local Government Conference which was held in Botswana, where over 600 delegates called on the Commonwealth Local Government Forum to develop a 15 year strategy for local government focusing on supporting its members in developing and implementing modes to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Dr Buontempo announced that the next meeting in two years’ time will be held in Malta.

Dr Buontempo also spoke about the EU-funded initiatives, with a combined value of €900,000 which government embarked in order to help Maltese entities involved in local governance, such as regional committees, local councils and administrative committees. Through such initiatives, Malta has already benefitted from the first ever professional development diploma for local council secretaries in 22 years of local government, as well as a profiling of the training needs in the sector.

Dr Buontempo pointed out that the previous government refrained from participating in certain programmes for which Malta was eligible, such as URBACT, and stated that it was his intention, “that local government in Malta should benefit from as much international initiatives as possible, both at an EU level, as well at an international level.”