Mur Lura
ADDRESS BY THE HON. MICHAEL REFALO, MINISTER FOR TOURISM, AT THE ONE-DAY SEMINAR "THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE ENVIRONMENT", ORGANIZED BY NATURE TRUST - ST. ANDREWS - 7TH DECEMBER 2001
pr1861
07/12/2001
07/12/2001
Sustainable Development and Tourism
| I thank Nature Trust for extending this most welcome | invitation to me and I am very willingly here with you this morning, to contribute my views, as well as those of my Ministry and of the Malta Tourism Authority, to the debate on Tourism and Sustainable Development, the theme of today’s Seminar. |
| It is sadly true, that not so many years ago, | whenever a tourism development was proposed, little thought was given to the environment, to the sustainability of projects and the overall image product of a destination. The utilitarian, economic aspect always prevailed while such small voices, that existed and were raised in protest or to warn the unheeding, were almost inevitably drowned out. |
| Malta and the development of our tourism, especially | during the seventies and eighties, was not immune to the syndrome’s influences and practices. Gradually, and some would say better late than never, the realisation that mistakes had been committed, began to sink in. We were actually putting at risk the natural and man made treasures which drew visitors to the Maltese archipelago and placing overdue strains on our social fabric and the national services infrastructure. |
| This made decision makers and planners stop and | think. |
| Again, better late than never, today’s development | policies are based on the principles of sustainability. We started along this road in the early nineties when a partial freeze, excepting the construction of five star properties, was imposed. Somehow, somewhere policies were reversed in the mid-nineties, and provoked much pent up but mostly unnecessary supply of bedstock at lower levels of the accommodation sector. |
| Meanwhile the insistent voice of caution and alarm | bells caused planners and decision-makers to revisit and reconsider such policy parameters as there were. Finally, after a three year wait, during which local and international experts drew up reports and the conclusions which are reflected in the Carrying Capacity Assessment of the Maltese Islands report, tourism development policy, as officially sanctioned and specifically endorsed by Cabinet, is back on the rails of the principles of sustainability. |
| The policy does not call for a freeze on development | but for more control on development. It sets out five limiting considerations, namely, economic dependence, excess bed capacity, popular support for tourism, seasonal impacts on certain localities, and spatial constraints. |
| The policy is based on a number of economic, market, | social and service parameters and is designed to promote the reutilisation and refurbishment of plant, hence the current budget incentive, rather than expansion. It calls for no increase in bedstock, implying that older properties no longer viable business propositions, make way for others already in the pipeline, and for the alternative use of properties. Taking a cue from the current and projected demographic mix, owners of small hotels and guesthouses have left the leisure and joined the retirement home market. |
| Plant designed specifically for the summer market is | not encouraged while in the holiday apartment sector, the freeze on anything but first class properties, has been confirmed. Development is conditioned to stricter spatial parameters while the construction of sport, cultural and leisure attractions and facilities to further broaden our product offer is encouraged. |
| The monthly guest-night limit has been capped at 1.6 | million per month while promotion of off season, mainly niche market, activities is encouraged. The human resource aspect underlines the need to maintain a well trained work force. The policy includes a call for better heritage presentation and the democratisation of culture. In so far as investment is concerned, policy direction points towards areas which impact least on the environmental, social and economic aspects and make best use of our limited human and other national and natural resources. |
| So much for principle and theory. The problems and | the inevitable tugs of war begin with their implementation in practice. Not least their interpretation as the economic, social and environmental forces come into play. As the Malta Tourism Authority’s Head of Research, Mary Louise Mangion, will be addressing you later on this morning, I will refrain from mentioning the many innovative and worthwhile initiatives on the Authority’s agenda, drawing board and project implementation stages. |
| I will end my short presentation by saying a few | words about my Ministry’s involvement in the International Ecotourism Year 2002 project. As many of you, including your President, are aware, Tourism has been entrusted with coordinating activities for Ecotourism year. |
| We have involved all Government Ministries, entities | and departments. Our aim is to show that this is a Government not a sectoral, tourism initiative. Moreover, we have invited a number of likeminded, relevant and related NGO’s to join us in the planning as well as in the implementation stages of the program. In parallel, we call for greater law enforcements specifically in the field of pollution, clean air and bathing water. |
| We are realistic enough to understand that we cannot | expect a revolutionary day from night change in attitude and ingrained practices. Our objectives are modest but farsighted. In terms of environmental awareness we aim to find Malta at the close of 2002 a little better than when the year started. |
| Towards this end we trust that a number of eco | tourism year initiative take root and, in the true spirit of sustainability, ensure that future generations enjoy the real and a better Malta. |
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