Analysing the governance of Maltese culture and Valletta 2018 from a central government and local councils perspective

Abstract

This paper analyses culture from a national policy perspective and by taking into account the Valletta 2018 initiative that is directly and indirectly changing the cultural platform of culture in the Maltese Islands. Given the small geographic size of Malta and the strong interplay of the central government in policy-making, a special emphasis is made to the relationship between the local councils and the central government. The original contribution of this paper stems from its dynamic analysis of culture and governance. The analysis is supplemented by primary results that were derived from a survey conducted with all local councils in Malta and Gozo.