Educational sessions have started again in schools during SkolaSajf, intended to continue to educate and create awareness about public cleanliness, with the main protagonist in them being the character so renowned for this subject, Xummiemu.
The Minister for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation Clifton Grima and the Parliamentary Secretary for Public Cleanliness Glenn Bedingfield visited the Wied il-Għajn school during one of these -sessions.
In these sessions, the children learn about the importance of recycling, in which bags different materials should be placed, the importance of not throwing illegal waste and how long it takes for different materials to degrade if they are not disposed of properly. All the children present during these sessions make a promise to become Xummiemu Rangers, where they promise to contribute to Xummiemu’s mission and take action if they come across any illegal dumping.
Minister Clifton Grima praised this initiative because he explained the importance that as a people, from a young age, we learn and cherish the environment around us.
“In our schools we are giving a complete education which means an education that covers not only the curriculum, but also subjects that lead the children to be full citizens. Maintaining the environment is a subject that we educate about as well. It is good to show children the importance of the environment that goes beyond our home,” explained Minister Clifton Grima. He also claimed that from the visits he makes to schools he knows how much today’s generation cares about the environment.
“Therefore I believe that this generation will be an example for us so that we also make a greater effort to understand that the environment is part of our daily life and therefore we must fear for it,” concluded the minister.
Parliamentary Secretary Glenn Bedingfield explained how to take care of our country we must reach everyone. “That is why we are doing these sessions with the children. We want to foster a culture of cleanliness because to take care of our country we need a collective effort from the big and the small.”
Apart from schools, there is also currently a national campaign that promotes public cleanliness while conveying knowledge about different means that exist for the citizen to report illegal dumping, including through the ‘Clean and Upkeep’ app or through a phone call on line 1718.
