LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The installation of solar panels on every new or renovated building could become a legal requirement from next year. The proposal is in a list of amendments to the minimum requirements for energy efficiency that is up for public consultation.
The Planning Ministry stated that the technical document would introduce new minimum requirements for efficient energy use in new and renovated buildings.
“Malta is determined to reach European targets on reducing carbon emissions and these proposals address a number of goals set out by the European Green Deal with the target of achieving buildings that produce zero or close to zero emissions”, the statement said. “This must be achieved by reducing energy use in existing buildings and installing solar panels on all new builds and certain renovation projects”.

– foto: agenziafotogramma.it –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela stated that there is no need for hundreds of migrants to perish in order for the European Union to comprehend the urgency of this problem as he reflected on the deaths of hundreds of refugees off Greece in what is one of the worst sea tragedies in the Mediterranean in recent years.
During an interview on the Labour Party radio station, Robert Abela also described migration as a common challenge for Malta and Italy, two neighbouring countries, while adding as “crucial” the joint efforts with Italy and Mediterranean countries for this challenge against criminal groups to be addressed by everyone.
Meanwhile, the Maltese Premier announced he will be visiting Libya this week for talks with Libyan Prime Minister Dbeibeh on migration and energy, among other issues. Abela declared that the Government’s vision is for the building of a bridge between Africa and the European Union, adding he sees potential for corridors of clean energy that can link Europe with the potential of renewable energy in neighbouring North African countries.
On migration, Abela said that Malta and Italy agree that human trafficking is putting pressure on both countries, adding that there is a need for the necessary tools to be provided by the European Union, so that countries like Libya and Tunisia will also join in the fight against organised crime.
Abela insisted that the strongest measure was preventing the arrival of migrants in the first place, adding that doing so required preventing departures from countries in North Africa. He called for increased investment in migrants’ and asylum seekers’ countries of origin to provide their inhabitants with an “opportunity for a better tomorrow” in their native lands.
The Maltese Prime Minister insisted on the importance of a united response in the European fora. “We persevered in our message, and have since been joined by Italy, particularly once Meloni became Italy’s prime minister… and with the help of Greece and Cyprus, our message began to be transmitted strongly,” he said. “Now the issue is not only being discussed more frequency at the European Council, but we are also seeing more concrete hopes of a united response”.
– photo credit agenziafotogramma.it-

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Only 287 migrants are actually residing in Maltàs open reception centres according to the latest quarterly report compiled by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. This, is despite that the seven open reception centres may accommodate up to 2,964 migrants.
According to the data on the situation of asylum-seekers and refugees in Malta between 1 January and 30 April 2023, half of the population in the reception centres are adult males, 65% of those who live in ?al-Far Tent Village alone. The top 3 countries of origin identified in the open centres are Eritreans (16%), Sudanese (15%) and Somali (13%) nationals.
The majority of asylum-seekers and refugees manage to find their own place and live in the community, rather than in open centres. According to the UNCHR, 212 individuals living in the community benefit from social assistance. Syrians (33%), Libyans (16%) and Ukrainians (9%) are the main beneficiaries of assistance while living in the community.
In Malta, there are seven reception centres, five of which are run by the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers. Reception centres provide asylum-seekers with accommodation until they are able to find accommodation.
The open centres are different to detention centres, where migrants are detained automatically upon arrival and prevented from leaving the centres until they are allowed to move to reception centres. In Malta, there are three official detention centres.
The report also provides information on sea arrivals between 1 January and 30 April. According to the data provided, there were 92 migrants reached Malta, including two medical evacuations, while during the same period in 2022, only one person arrived in Malta by sea. All individuals who arrived in 2023 were male and departed from Libya. The new arrivals were Bangladeshi (75), Egyptian (11), and Sudanese (5) origin. The nationality of one person is unknown as the Maltese authorities were not able to officially register him due to his medical condition. All the migrants who arrived in Malta, excluding one migrant, arrived in April.
credit photo agenziafotogramma.it
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta has registered the highest increase in building permits issued in 2022 from all European Union member states. This was confirmed by the EU’s statistical office.
Malta experienced a 29.4% increase in building permits last year, while the registered average in the EU experienced a decline of 4.5%. The number of building permits issued decreased in 18 EU states, while the number rose in only nine countries including, Spain, Croatia, Bulgaria, Italy, and at the top of the table, Malta.
The Maltese government and the entities responsible for the planning issues has recently been at the centre of widespread criticism which led to a national protest attended by thousands of protesters demanding planning reform and an end to environmental destruction.
The Maltese Finance Minister Clyde Caruana warned that Maltàs population must grow to 800,000 by 2040 for the current economic model to be sustained. Following this statement, the Economy Minister added that Maltàs economic model is being adjusted to attract foreign investment that takes up less land and requires fewer workers to generate economic growth.

– foto: agenziafotogramma.it

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The NGO Sea-Watch confirmed that in the past few days, countless migrants have once again been pulled back to Libya, in some instances boats were also burned, and at the same time, hundreds of people drowned in the Mediterranean in the biggest shipwreck in years.
Following yesterday’s shipwreck off the Greek coast, another NGO, Alarm Phone said that there are so many open questions to be answered about what had happened off Pylos. “We need an independent investigation into the actions and inactions of the Greek forces and the role of Frontex.” Alarm Phone is also demanding that the search for the missing should continued and that DNA of all bodies found should be taken and recorded before their burial.
Rescuers saved 104 passengers – including Egyptians, Syrians, Pakistanis, Afghans and Palestinians – and recovered 79 bodies. The 25- to 30-meter boat is believed to have left the Tobruk area in Libya with hundreds of migrants onboard. The trawler was about halfway from Libya to Italy when its engine stopped functioning in the night, started flooding and capsized. Less than 15 minutes later, it sank into one of the Mediterranean’s deepest points, off the coast of Greece.
Meanwhile, the NGO Sea-Watch accused the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that she held secret talks with Abdul Hamid Ad-Dbeiba in January and Haftar in May 2023. The NGO alleged “Ad-Dbeibàs drone attacks and Haftar’s military offensive are directly related in time to these talks.”
Sea-Watch added that Ad-Dbeiba is the ruler of Tripoli and parts of Libyàs west. He is bombing the western port cities of Al-Maya, Zuwara, and Az-Zawiya with drones where several people have died already.
The NGO added that a similar military offensive in eastern Libya is undergoing on orders given by Khalifa Haftar, local warlord and convicted war criminal. “He is currently imprisoning numerous migrants and he launched a military offensive lasting several days in Tobruk and Musaid.”
Sea-Watch added that various small and large militias profited massively from the refugee business. The SSA, Stabilisation Support Authority, is one of them and it is an umbrella organization of various militias in eastern Libya. The NGO said that the SSA acts as a self-proclaimed security force at sea and on land, indirectly financed by the EU, and accused it of extorting money from the families of people on the move after they have been arrested.

– foto: agenziafotogramma.it

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

ROME (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni met for more than an hour in Palazzo Chigi in Rome. During the official talks, both leaders discussed various issues of interest including the energy sector, immigration, and defence.
Prime Minister Abela described the meeting with Prime Minister Meloni as cordial and declared that the talks will yield more cooperation in areas that are beneficial to both sides.
Italian Prime Minister Meloni said that the meeting with Prime Minister Abela continues to strengthen the work and the political, historical and cultural ties between the two countries who share common positions during official meetings of European leaders in Brussels.
The discussion focused on the energy sector, with the Maltese Prime Minister announcing that a technical group will be set up to see that the second interconnector project between Malta and Ragusa is carried out. He referred to other initiatives involving renewable energy projects between Europe and Africa from which both Malta and Italy can benefit.
“We eagerly await the implementation of this EU funded project and I am delighted to announce a joint technical group to facilitate and oversee its fruition without delays,” said the Maltese Prime Minister. He added “we believe that energy interconnections with North Africa, especially the benefits of solar and with energy should be our main focus. We eagerly anticipate collaboration with Italy.”
The Italian Prime Minister emphasized the need for Malta and Italy to collaborate more on projects that connect the two countries as far as energy is concerned. “We have been collaborating on energy, thanks to Italian companies, with links between the two countries, on Mediterranean and EU levels. The infrastructural issue consists of closer cooperation and common work for the future of Europe. This is important for diversification and security in energy such as gas, hydrogen, and renewable energy,” declared Giorgia Meloni
Regarding immigration, the Italian Prime Minister said that she is hoping that the European Commission will help Tunisia financially so that, among others, the problem of immigration in the Mediterranean is addressed. “We discussed the fact that without defending the European external borders, it would be difficult to talk and address secondary movements,” declared Meloni, while adding, “the challenge is to work on primary movements to solve the problem of secondary movements.” She said that over the recent years, there was good collaboration between Malta and Italy which led to change in the principles by which the EU Commission addresses and decides.
The Maltese Prime Minister referred to immigration as a common challenge for both countries that requires solidarity from the other European countries, while he stressed agreements that should be reached with countries such as Tunisia and Libya. “Migration should not be Italy’s or Maltàs challenge to fend for ourselves. It is a European challenge. We have voiced our concerns that migration requires a holistic European solution,” said Robert Abela, while adding, “I extend my gratitude to Giorgia Meloni, Ursola Von der Leyen, and Mark Rutte for their work with Tunisia focusing on both economic development and important reforms that benefit both Tunisia and the EU itself.” He said that a similar approach should be adopted with other countries like Libya.

– photo Agenziafotogramma.it –
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta is committed to continue investing and making the necessary decisions and implementing the waste management plan. This was declared by the Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela during a meeting with the European Commissioner for the Environment, Virginijus Sinkevicius in Valletta. Prime Minister Robert Abela explained that the Malteee Government was making a transition in its priorities with an ambitious plan described as one of the strongest among the countries all of the European Union. He referred to the Multi Material Recovery Facility project in Hal Far that will be improving the waste management capacity, adding that different materials would be recovered and exported to be used in other products, in order to reduce waste. This project was putting into practice the circular economy and strengthening the waste treatment capacity. Robert Abela also referred to the implementation of the waste management plan between 2021 and 2030, the allocation of half a billion euro by the Government for the infrastructure for waste management and for waste to become a resource. It was said, that the investment being made complements decisions and a change in policy including the mandatory separation of waste and the implementation of the Ecohive involving multiple waste processing plants.
(ITALPRESS).
-photo credit Department of Information Malta-

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The international NGO Alarm Phone confirmed that “a tragic shipwreck took place off Pylos despite that the Greek, Italian and Maltese authorities were informed about the boat full of migrants in distress since Last a Tuesday”.
According to Alarm Phone the last contact with the migrants from as made just before it capsized during the early hours of last Wednesday.
104 migrants were rescued, while 79 people have so far been found drowned. However, the number of death migrants is expected to increase. It is still unclear how many migrants were onboard the boat, with numbers varies from 400 up to 750 people.
The number of missing and assumed drowned would be 567 people if there were 750 people onboard, that would put the total death toll to almost 650 people.
The boat was packed on the outside of the deck and with hundreds of people inside the boat packed like sardines. The rescued and the those who were found drowned are most likely the migrants who were outside the boat.
According to testimonies from survivors the boat was packed with people, outside and inside, inside was mainly women and children while the men was sitting outside. “If this information is correct, most of the survivors and drowned are men, since they were the ones sitting outside on the boat,” said Alarm Phone.
Pictures published after the people arrived in the port of Kalamate, support the theory that the survivors were mainly men, no women or children were seen in any of the published pictures.
The chance of finding people who were trapped inside the boat when it went down, would be extremely difficult because it is 5,000 meters below sea level.
All survivors were taken to the port in Kalamate, where approximately 30 people needed medical care and transported to the hospital, and will eventually be taken to the reception and identification center in Malakasa. Nationalities of the people onboard were reported to be from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Palestine and Egypt.
Greecès caretaker PM Ioannis Sarmas declared three days of mourning for the victims of one of the country’s deadliest shipwrecks involving refugees.
The European Agency Frontex confirmed that its surveillance aircraft detected the boat on Tuesday at 09:47 and immediately informed the competent authorities. It added that the agency is ready to support the Greek authorities in the ongoing SAR operation. “We are deeply moved by the tragic events that are unfolding off the coast of Greece. The search and rescue operation coordinated by Greek authorities is ongoing.”
In a statement, Alarm Phone urged all authorities to “Stop blaming people on the move for trying to escape your violence!
Stop blaming people on the move for their own death! Stop pushbacks, end death at sea, tear down Europès borders!”

– photo Aegean Boat Report –

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The United Nations urged Libya to treat migrants and asylum seekers with dignity, highlighting concerns over their treatment including arbitrary detention and mass expulsion. “Libyan authorities have arrested thousands of men, women and children from the streets and their homes or following raids on alleged traffickers’ camps and warehouses,” the UN’s Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a statement. Many, including “pregnant women and children”, are held in “overcrowded and unsanitary” conditions, UNSMIL said.
Authorities must grant UN agencies and aid organisations “unimpeded access to detainees in need of urgent protection”, UNSMIL added. Libya is a key departure point for migrants who are often fleeing conflict and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa. They seek to reach Italian shores just 290 kilometres to the north across the Mediterranean Sea. Libya hosts more than 600 000 migrants, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Most enter illegally by crossing vast deserts to enter the country’s porous southern border. Vessels carrying migrants off its coast are regularly intercepted by the Libyan navy – even in international waters – with those on board forcibly returned and placed in detention centres. Since the beginning of 2023, more than 7 000 migrants have been intercepted at sea and returned to Libya, the IOM said. More than 600 have drowned in attempted crossings to Europe and 368 people are missing, the agency added. In the same period, more than 50 000 migrants have arrived in Italy including more than 22,000 from Libya, according to the UN’s refugee agency.
(ITALPRESS).
-photo credit agenziafotogramma.it-

Source: medNews