Think-tank to draw up road map for culture

A think-tank has been set up to formulate a road map for the future of culture in Malta and to contribute to the development of a national cultural policy.

The Valletta Creative Forum was launched yesterday at St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity, which is inviting stakeholders to form part of it.

The project is being developed in collaboration with the Culture and Tourism Ministry and the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts, with the support of the British Council.

The development comes in the wake of a European Commission study which shows that the contribution of culture and the arts to Malta's economy is the lowest in the EU, standing at a value-added to national GDP of 0.2 per cent when compared to the EU average of 2.6 per cent.

The results of the study are being seen as an indication that Malta has the potential to capitalise to a greater extent on the culture and creative industry through strategies designed to generate employment, training and professionalism.

EU projects coordinator Toni Attard said at the launch that the think tank will seek to expose the value of the arts on a social and economic level. It will tackle the need to develop the necessary infrastructure to "professionalise" the arts. It will address pressing questions such as: What is the role of culture in 21st century Malta? What does the future hold for Maltese artists? What is the impact of culture on our society?

Over the next six months, the VCF will bring together artists, policy makers, institutions, politicians, business entrepreneurs and professionals from Malta and overseas to initiate a debate on such issues, which will result in a document that will lay out a clearer direction for culture.

Six fora will tackle a variety of issues, including management of the arts in Malta; the relationship between the arts and the health sector; the contribution of the arts to heritage and tourism; creativity and innovation in local communities; cultural entrepreneurship; and cultural diplomacy as a means to endorse Malta's identity and celebrate diversity.

Through working groups, participants will recommend strategies and initiatives to generate new ideas for Malta's creative industries, Mr Attard said.

A variety of European cultural experts will contribute to the think tank, including Philip Hammond from the Northern Ireland Arts Council and Kathinka Dietrich, chairman of the European Cultural Foundation.

The VCF will also allow participants to experience international practical work developed by some of Europe's foremost artists. The theatre company Cahoots, for example, is to perform bedside theatre in Maltese hospitals. Aidan Dooley will conduct workshops in historical character development. And Franz Winther, composer and musician from Odin Teatret, will address the need for creativity in local communities.

Peter Portelli, Permanent Secretary at the Culture and Tourism Ministry, said the development of a national cultural policy has long been in the making but has never materialised.

In times of change, as was the current situation, it was all the more important to establish a cultural policy, he said, adding that the recommendations that emerge from the VCF would definitely be taken into account in its formulation.

The first forum, Cultural Governance in Malta and Beyond, is scheduled for January 27. It will discuss the remit of each major cultural organisation and how these can collaborate further; how other European countries manage cultural governance, and whether, in Malta, this is fostering creativity and transnational cultural cooperation.

Interested individuals are invited to register for any of the fora by sending an e-mail to euproject@sjcav.org. They are free of charge and will include lunch. For further information, contact Mr Attard on 2122 3200.