Albert Marshall,
Executive Chair, Arts Council Malta
It has been quite an insightful process for Arts Council Malta
(ACM), to be leading this project towards developing Regional
Cultural Strategies (RCS) while collaborating and thereby exchanging
knowledge with representatives from regional and local government,
various organisations, creative practitioners and other stakeholders.
his reflects a participatory approach to
policy implementation as well as a strategic
focus on the diverse communities that
make up Malta’s cultural and creative ecology. ACM’s
vision and strategy will remain fully committed
to embrace the implementation of the RCS,
endorsing their importance through the integration
of specifically related strategic objectives within
the recently launched ACM Strategy 2025. The
consultation process was instrumental in the way
the Council aims to localise the priorities set out
in the National Cultural Policy. The policy is based
on the principles of the 2005 UNESCO Convention
on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of
Cultural Expressions.
Culture plays a central role in building stronger,
healthier and more cohesive communities while
being integral to urban and rural societies and a
catalyst for sustainable development. This resonates
with a number of Sustainable Development Goals
such as Goal 11, which makes reference to creating
inclusive public spaces and protecting cultural
heritage and practices. It is within this context that
ACM has strived towards the design of these RCS
and the overall strategic approach to supporting
the cultural and creative sectors at local and
regional levels.
Community and cultural exchange is one of the
main pillars which ACM has been supporting and
facilitating through various strategic and funding
initiatives. Work is continuously in progress to create
possibilities for local cultural spaces to serve as
locations of cultural exchange. The need to do more
in harnessing the distinctive and diverse cultural
asset base of each region in Malta through the
launch of these strategies is being acknowledged.
In the coming years, ACM intends to further
develop and invest in these strategic areas, and
others such as cultural entrepreneurship, research,
internationalisation, education and development.
Overlaps with other sectors such as health,
environment and social aspects will be given
more prominence responding to international
urgencies. One ought to recognise that a nuanced
understanding of local cultural assets is key to
success in extending ACM`s reach and exploring new
territory. In light of this, one looks forward to seeing
these strategies being transformed into action in
tandem with the realisation of ACM’s strategic aim of
supporting the cultural wellbeing of Malta’s regions
in the coming years.
North Regional Cultural Strategy