The Minister for Gozo and Planning Clint Camilleri together with the Minister for Inclusion and Volunteering Julia Farrugia Portelli inaugurated the Volunteer Centre project in Xewkija Gozo.
This is after an investment of more than €40,000 from the Ministry for Gozo and Planning which took care of the extensive modernization works carried out in this building. This Voluntary Centre will serve as a one-stop-shop where Gozitan voluntary organizations will be served with up-to-date facilities and resources. In fact, its opening marks the completion of another measure of this year’s Budget. The centre can be used 24 hours a day with a calendar system and online access through which voluntary organizations can book the use of the building in the easiest way. Among others, the centre is equipped with modern facilities that include a conference room and a garden for the use of associations.
The Minister for Gozo and Planning Clint Camilleri stated that this centre was renovated by Government workers. While I thank the workers for the work they did so that today we have this modernized centre, now the Gozitan voluntary organizations have several offices and halls where they can work as well as an outdoor area. Therefore they have a comfortable place that meets their needs as well as those of the public. Accordingly, he continued to say that he looks forward to more work especially when it comes to the voluntary sector which is so important for the island of Gozdija.
Minister for Inclusion and Volunteering Julia Farrugia Portelli reiterated the Government’s commitment to continue extending more aid to voluntary associations, which aid will be increasingly accessible in our communities. “This centre in Gozo now joins the other centers in Malta to offer assistance to Gozitan organizations in their daily operations. “As a Government we are committed to continue making the lives of our voluntary associations easier and easier, and the opening of this center in Gozo will do just that. We believe in the importance of volunteering in our society and we will continue to support the organizations that do so much good in our communities”, concluded the minister.
Present for this inauguration was also the Chief Executive of the Maltese Council for the Voluntary Sector Mauro Pace Parascandolo and the Director of the Operations Division within the Ministry for Gozo and Planning Joyce Farrugia. The Chief Executive of the Maltese Council for the Voluntary Sector, Mauro Pace Parascandalo, said that it is encouraging to see the great cooperation that existed between Ministries and different entities, who all did their best with the aim of having a centre that will be a second home for the Gozitan associations. “I look forward to seeing many projects spring up and new initiatives in this place with all the support that is needed, because this will mean that this centre is reaching its fullness”, concluded Mr Pace Parascandolo.
This office will not only serve as a building for the Maltese Council for the Voluntary Sector, but will host the operation of the European Services in Malta (SEM) while it will also be used by the organizations registered as VOs where they can use this space to meet and organize their activities. The centre will also serve as a one-stop-shop of help and support to Gozitan volunteers and voluntary associations. This will complement the three centres that already work in this way in Malta, which are located in Belt, Rabat and Birkirkara. The Xewkija center was renovated by the workers of the Operation Division within the Ministry for Gozo and Planning in collaboration with the Maltese Council for the Voluntary Sector within the Ministry for Inclusion and Volunteering.
