We are living in a time when Malta’s environment is under increasing strain. Air quality is deteriorating, green spaces are shrinking, and the balance between rapid development and the wellbeing of citizens is all but lost. Yet, we cannot ignore that construction plays a crucial role in our economy. It generates employment, creates wealth, and supports a range of industries. The challenge, therefore, is not whether to build, but how
we build—and at what cost to our environment and quality of life.
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Can sustainable development truly be achieved in a country with limited space? Can a construction industry flourish while respecting our landscapes, heritage, and community needs? The answer is yes—but only if we adopt long-term thinking, careful planning, and a clear vision of the Malta we wish to leave to future generations.
We must ask ourselves: Do we want a country overwhelmed by buildings, where human wellbeing is secondary to profit? Or do we aim for a future in which quality takes precedence over quantity—where development is shaped by today’s challenges and tomorrow’s hopes?
The time has come to re-evaluate our policies and align them with sustainability, liveability, and national interest. A first step is to carry out a comprehensive assessment of every town and village. This means drawing up a detailed inventory of buildings—whether occupied or not—and, crucially, evaluating their historical and aesthetic value. Such a database would guide local planning, preservation, and regeneration strategies.
Each locality should be required to develop its own open space plan, proportionate to its size and character. Urban areas need forestation and recreational zones to support the health and wellbeing of residents. Abandoned or derelict buildings must be addressed. Owners should be given a clear choice: restore and repurpose, or, where no historical or architectural value exists, allow for replacement—but only following review by an expert aesthetic commission.
Rather than endlessly expanding into untouched land, the construction sector should shift focus toward renewal—revitalising what already exists. There is ample scope for development through restoration and adaptive reuse, ensuring that the industry remains active while protecting our limited land resources.
Public land within development zones that lies abandoned or underutilised should be transformed into public gardens and green areas. Here, the private sector can play a valuable role—working in partnership with government to create accessible spaces filled with endemic trees, play areas, and places for community life. Government should also consider acquiring privately owned land where necessary to expand public green infrastructure. A greener Malta is not just an environmental aspiration—it is a national priority.
This vision must also extend to our rural areas. The future of Maltese agriculture depends not only on financial support—such as EU funds through the Rural Development Programme—but also on robust policies that prevent misuse of farmland. Too often, plots cultivated for generations are being sold to buyers with no real farming intentions, who then repurpose them into private retreats or pseudo-agritourism venues.
To stop this trend, government must introduce legal safeguards that define “active farming” and restrict the transfer of agricultural land to non-farmers, except under strict regulatory review. Loopholes allowing farmland to be disguised as recreational property must be closed. A national register of agricultural land should be created to monitor ownership and usage, with regular inspections of land benefitting from public support. Where abuse is found, enforcement and penalties must follow.
If Malta is to move forward with dignity, we must make deliberate choices—choices that prioritise long-term wellbeing over short-term gain. Our future depends on how we use the land we have, how we value our environment, and how seriously we take our responsibility to preserve what is left—for ourselves, and for those yet to come.
