The Malta Independent on Sunday
Hundreds pitch in for National Clean-Up Day 2017
Hundreds of people lent a helping, civic hand during yesterday’s National Clean-Up Day. The initiative was launched by Parliamentary Secretary Deo Debattista and Maltese MEP Dr Miriam Dalli, together with members of NGOs Let’s Do It Malta and JCI Malta.
In all, 53 local councils participated in the clean-up day.
Debattista commented: “The government will go on supporting initiatives such as this, which encourage residents and youths to make an effort for a cleaner country. The fact that 53 local councils have willingly agreed to participate this year shows that our message is strong and is being heard. We also cannot forget that tourism nowadays affects all areas of our country and is a huge contributor to waste generation.”
Dalli in turn thanked JCI Malta for this ‘citizen’s initiative’ which addresses cleansing not as a taboo, but tackled it in a fun manner. Dalli also noted the effort made by the Cleansing Department, and hopes for a time in the near future when such initiatives to keep Malta clean will not be needed.
Cleansing Director Ramon Deguara also noted that employees work on 24-hour shift bases for different cleansing operations to take place around Malta. Apart from being part of initiatives such as the ‘National CleanUp Day’, the directorate has so far picked up a record amount of waste this year and will soon be adding to its resources.
JCI national president Rachel Cassar said that the organisation encourages citizens to take action and responsibility for the problems around them.
For the event, a number of companies including Betsson, Leo Vegas and M&Z Marketing gathered their employees and formed teams to tackle different sites all over the island.
The next National Clean-Up Day will take place on 15 September 2018 as part of a global initiative.