01-07 November 2000

			International Land Surveyors conference held in Malta The Mediterranean Surveyor in the New Millennium Conference, which was attended by 120 delegates from 40 countries world-wide, has emphasised in a significant manner the particular needs of surveyors in the various Mediterranean countries. This was stated by Robert Foster, the President of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG) at the end of this conference, which was recently held in Malta. The four-day conference was hosted by the Land Surveyors Society of Malta (LSSM) together with the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG). As a result of this seminar several Mediterranean countries showed their intention to prepare a programme of collaboration with the aim of helping each other in this very important field. During the meeting, Maltese surveyors were given the rare opportunity to hear papers from some the world's most renowned experts in this field. Many different subjects were tackled, including presentations on the situation of the profession in Mediterranean countries, educational and professional development, standardisation, land management and cadastral issues in the region as well as navigation safety and port infrastructure. A total of 55 papers were presented by both Maltese and International experts. Some of the distinguished speakers who addressed the conference included Paddy Prendergast, President of the Council of Europe Geodetic Surveyors (CLGE), Bernard Bour, Vice President of CELIPS and Bengt Rystedt, President of the International Association of Cartography. Issues concerning surveying in Malta featured prominently among the papers. Randolph Camilleri President of the LSSM spoke about "The Surveyors Situation on Malta". Joseph Bianco, Hydrographer at the Malta Maritime Authority, addressed the subject of the "Development of Hydrography in Malta", and Dr Sylvana Spiteri LL.D from the Land Registry Department delivered a paper entitled "The Development of Land Registration in Malta." Randolph Camilleri said, "The success of this conference is a clear indication of the progress achieved by the surveying profession in Malta since the LSSM became affiliated to FIG in 1994. Apart from this conference, we have also organised working weeks, which have attracted more than 500 participants." "These successes continue to fuel our determination to convince the relevant authorities to introduce Land Surveying courses at the University of Malta and for the legal warrant for Maltese land surveyors to be on a par with Europe," said Mr Camilleri. During the seminar, "The Mediterranean Surveyor in the New Millennium" the Maltese Society took the lead in establishing a system of co-operation between surveying associations in the Mediterranean region. Following the success of this conference, the LSSM will be co--ordinating the preparatory programme for the second meeting which is scheduled to take place in Cairo in 2001. The excellent work of the LSSM was also noted by Mr Foster who described the Malta conference as one of the most professionally organised seminars that he had had the pleasure of attending.

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