Speech | Wednesday, 18 June 2008

Phase one of SmartCity launched

Speech by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi on the occasion of the launch of Phase One of SmartCity Malta last Saturday

It is of satisfaction for my Government and myself to participate at this announcement that confirms that the implementation of SmartCity is moving according to its own ambitious time-frames. Your energy has been met by our enthusiasm. All stakeholders in Malta have quickly appreciated the importance of this project. We have all pulled on the same rope because of our shared belief and commitment to SmartCity Malta.
This evening, we are experiencing an event the like of which there will be more over the coming years.
We are announcing that Malta is taking an important step closer to where it aims to arrive by 2015.
My Government has identified the areas in which we can develop as centres of excellence. ICT is one of those sectors and it is itself a fundamental enabler of all the other areas in which we aim to excel. What is being inaugurated today is not only the metaphorical foundation stone of SmartCity, but also the literal foundation stone of a future Malta.
In this future the definition of prosperity will have evolved from what we have been used to. We take as a matter of course that the creation of wealth for its own sake has no normative value if that wealth is not disseminated among all members of the community. The social benefits of SmartCity are quantified in the thousands of jobs it will create, in the contribution it will be making to the quality of life to the people who live here, in the multi-cultural and multi-national cross-fertilisation that this vibrant cosmopolitan city will be bringing about.
But we now also judge prosperity by how sustainable its creation is, by how well-thought through its impact is on our environment today and in terms of its enjoyment by future generations. I endorse, and without hesitation I point out as a model to be replicated, the example being set by SmartCity to ensure the sustainability of its development and operation. Exponential economic growth, which our economy needs, cannot be equal to an exponential degradation of our environment. On the contrary, the highest standards of sustainability, of energy conservation, of waste reduction, of emission restraint, are keys to growth that outlives the short term.
This example is to be followed and built on in all our efforts to renew our economy and to regenerate our urban environment. The outcome of that development must be that we work more, produce more and earn more, consuming less energy and generating less waste.
The building of SmartCity is an important key in the regeneration of the Grand Harbour area and of the communities living around it. The well being of these communities can no longer rely on traditional and heavy industries. It is unrealistic to run economies merely on the basis of baseless optimism. We must drive economic change with initiative and political direction.
Our political direction is clear: the people of Malta are fully capable of exploiting opportunities that come their way; the Grand Harbour area is a focus of economic opportunity, not of nostalgia for long gone times of defunct prosperity; we can regenerate under-utilised or derilict areas by inviting investment from private entrepreneurship; and we have a real offer for foreign investors.
During the coming years the transformation of Ricasoli will be the first in a series of transformations along the littoral of the Harbours of Valletta.
I urge everyone involved to do everything in their power to see this effort through. Our collective reward will be a new city: a new symbol of our presence on the global stage, a concentration that mobilises an entirely new level of energy; indeed a new pillar on which rests the growing prosperity of our nation.
I look forward to our next meeting here where with our SmartCity partners we will roll out the red carpet to the first workers coming here to transform this dream into reality.