Minister for the National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government José Herrera together with Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister Carmelo Abela launched Kultura Malta, an initiative aimed at making a positive contribution towards our national heritage, art and cultural sectors.

The Government is fully committed to effectively support our local talent by further collaborating and promoting cultural initiatives being produced and organized in Malta and Gozo. Minister Herrera said that his Ministry together with various other stakeholders, particularly Arts Council Malta, have already launched various other initiatives to assist artists and those involved in the culture and creative sectors.  “As a Ministry we already have several entities that are strongly supporting the cultural and creative sectors”, said Minister Herrera

It was also remarked that during such unprecedented times the Government and the industry are adapting to the new reality and are continuously working together to launch new initaitives to support the local creative and cultural sectors. “I am also pleased that together with my colleague Carmelo Abela we are collaborating together to continue to deliver in these times and in the future cultural projects also on the public broadcasting PBS”, stated Minister Herrera.

Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister Carmelo Abela, who is also the Minister responsible for national broadcasting, stated that the Ministry is supporting this beneficial initiative by the Ministry for the National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government. It is an initiative aptly proposed at a time when the general public is on the lookout for enriching audio-visual material to watch and follow. He noted how, over these past weeks, the number of viewers following PBS stations has increased considerably, particularly during transmission times which would normally be less followed, such as mornings and afternoons. In fact, the demand for public stations has increased significantly in March and April, when compared to the ratings in January and February. Viewers following TVM during the day have increased by 54%, whilst those following TVM2 have increased by 91%. According to Minister Abela, this calls for a wider selection of TV programmes which address the current needs of their viewers. 

Minister Abela provided details about the role of the national broadcaster in this initiative. He explained how, for this project, the national broadcaster supported Arts Council Malta and collaborated with the entity, within the limits permitted by the broadcaster’s financial and operational resources. He added that PBS is contributing in two ways: by broadcasting some of the programmes proposed by artists and by sharing a wide range of content from its archives. This content includes an array of TV drama, children’s programmes, documentaries, concerts and shows to be used in new programmes and to be uploaded on other platforms targeting a wider audience. Minister Abela concluded that, “besides being essentially worthwhile, these initiatives are an opportunity for the public broadcaster to continue offering its service to the local audience. It does not only partake in such initiatives on the basis of its declared obligations, but also because it is willing to do so.”