In recent years, mostly because of the fast developments in the electronic means of communication and information, the infrastructures that sustain life in modern societies have become increasingly interlinked. In the provision of energy and water - in land, air and sea transport and the systems that make them sure and safe - in financial management and the security of payment systems between governments, firms and citizens - in the provision of health services...

The administration of all this infrastructure has become more and more efficient and effective... but it has also become more vulnerable.  An attack on the electronic bases which keep it going could create an enormous disruption in human lives. This has made necessary a sharper focus on those sections of the infrastructure which are deemed to be critical. If they're not well protected... if they are damaged by some technical malfunction or because of an attack, life at all levels and in all sectors of a country can become paralysed.

So, it has become crucial to understand what constitutes the critical infrastructure - the dangers of an accidental or criminal threat to its operations - and how to protect it. The exercise cannot be done once for all, but must be ongoing, in the wake of changes in technological practices that continue unabated. One would hope that in this country too, such a review is an ongoing process which is being carried out with all the care that is vitally needed.

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AFRICA

Some people correctly underline the importance for contacts and trade between Malta and African countries to increase and deepen. Following such a strategy makes sense. Those who push for it should be backed.

With the opening and maintenance of consular posts and embassies, the government has been heading in this direction.  A number of private firms... though they operate under the radar... have been striving for ages to make their presence felt in certain African destinations.

What might be missing is an overarching approach that is coherent and sustainable, aimed at achieving certain diplomatic and commercial objectives in African countries, which go beyond what the EU is pushing forward. However, for such an approach to be successful, it needs a common, well-thought out collaboration between the government, private enterprises and acaademic researchers, covering a clearly defined action programme in given sectors, in specific regions of Africa. With the allocation of adequate resources, projects could then be launched that would be useful for Malta as well as for the countries where it has a presence.

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LANGUAGES

Once upon a time, Maltese people used to boast about the number of foreign languages they were familiar with - English and Italian were on top of the list, but also as well there were Spanish, French and Arabic... Now it seems as if that was only the case in days long gone by. Today for better or for worse, less and less Maltese are fluent in more than one language or at best, two - English and Maltese, one well enough, the other so and so...

Perhaps I'm exaggerating. Still, it's a source of worry to meet someone who declares that the challenge of knowing languages is no longer an important issue, since with AI, you can talk and get understood in all other languages. That argument leaves me unconvinced.