BASIC INFORMATION
MaltaTuesday, 24 March 2026
Malta’s Sustainable Development Strategy for 2050 was published in 2024 and builds on Malta’s Sustainable Development Vision for 2050 published in 2018. The Strategy aligns with the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda and the 17 SDGs. It integrates economic, social, and environmental priorities and is monitored through defined targets and national indicators. The Strategy sets out five Strategic Goals:
Transitioning towards a Climate-Neutral Green and Blue Economy
Preservation of Sustainable Urban Development and Cultural Heritage
Ensuring Healthy Lives and Well-being for All
Accelerating Digital Transformation, Smart Mobility and Connectivity
Achieving Social Fairness and Prosperity for All
Ministry for the Environment, Energy and Public Cleanliness
In Malta, the Ministry for the Environment, Energy and Public Cleanliness through the Sustainable Development Directorate acts as the Competent Authority for sustainable development. However, this responsibility is mainstreamed across the Public Administration, supported by a robust governance mechanism under the Sustainable Development Act.
This legislative framework ensures system-wide coordination, notably by designating Permanent Secretaries as Sustainable Development Coordinators and establishing a Sustainable Development Focal Point in every Ministry. Moreover, bodies such as the Guardian of Future Generations and the Sustainable Development Network established by the Sustainable Development Act, play a vital role in enhancing Malta’s sustainable development governance. The Guardian facilitates national cross-sectoral dialogue, supports policy coherence, and promotes inclusive decision-making through community-focused initiatives. Whereas, the Sustainable Development Network is structured to reflect a diverse and inclusive governance model, including the setting up of the Sustainable Development Network Sub-Committee composed of NGOs having the prerogative to propose recommendations to the Sustainable Development Network on how to effectively promote the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development in line with Part V Article 9(3) of the Sustainable Development Act.
Malta has established a range of mechanisms and initiatives designed to promote stakeholder engagement, strengthen policy coherence for sustainable development (PCSD), and foster best practice and peer learning across all levels of governance including:
The Sustainable Development Multi-Stakeholder Forum: Organised annually to assess priority areas and discuss ongoing and needed actions towards advancing the SDGs, and for materialising Malta’s five Sustainable Development Strategic Goals emanating from Malta’s Sustainable Development Strategy for 2050. This Forum is opened to a wide range of stakeholders, including Government ministries and entities, regional and local councils, NGOs, youth representatives, academics, and the private sector.
SDG Youth Champions Initiative: Launched in November 2024, the initiative aims to raise awareness and empower young people to become active agents of change for sustainable development. Through workshops, peer engagement, and collaboration with schools and youth organisations, the initiative promotes intergenerational learning and supports the development of future leaders in sustainability.
Educating Future Leaders: To further strengthen sustainability education, a child-friendly version of Malta’s Sustainable Development Strategy was developed and distributed to all Year 3 students across Malta and Gozo. The Sustainable Development Directorate delivers interactive, hands-on sessions to encourage early understanding of sustainability principles, ensuring that engagement begins at an early age.
Sustainable Development Action Awards: The Sustainable Development Action Awards celebrate individuals, voluntary organisations, businesses, educational institutions, youth groups, academics, and public entities whose actions drive tangible progress toward the SDGs. This initiative not only recognises excellence but also encourages knowledge exchange, peer learning, and replication of good practices in sustainable development.
ESG Platform: To enhance private sector engagement, Malta has developed a voluntary digital ESG Platform, enabling businesses to showcase their Environmental, Social, and Governance credentials. The platform encourages transparency, collaboration, and the sharing of responsible business practices aligned with the SDGs.
Sustainable Development Fund for Voluntary Organisations: Recognising the important role of civil society, the Sustainable Development Fund supports voluntary organisations in implementing sustainability-related projects and activities across the economic, social, and environmental pillars.
Sustainable Localities Scheme: The Government awarded grants to local councils to engage in infrastructural projects aimed at safeguarding the environment, social well-being and economic growth, with the aim of recognising and supporting local community’s efforts and to incentivise further sustainable initiatives.
Sustainable Development Action Days: Through the Malta Sustainable Development Action Days, the government brings together public institutions, private stakeholders, and civil society in dialogue and joint action, promoting public awareness and showcasing innovative initiatives that advance the 2030 Agenda.
Football for the Goals: UN‑aligned initiative that harnesses the widespread influence of football to inspire young people to engage with the SDGs. The initiative brings together schools and students, each focusing on one of the 17 SDGs. Through a blend of tournaments, guided workshops, and project‑based learning, students explore their assigned SDG and develop meaningful, practical initiatives within their school communities.
Scouts and Guides for the Goals: An initiative engaging scout and girl guide groups across Malta and Gozo. Through year‑round interactive activities the initiative helps young people understand sustainability and take meaningful action in their communities.
Furthermore, Malta has benefitted from a sequence of European Commission Technical Support Instrument projects implemented with the OECD to strengthen PCSD. The first project supported the development of an action plan and governance framework for implementing the national strategy, while the second, focused on embedding sustainable development objectives coherently across government, producing tools such as a Guidance Note for integrating SD considerations throughout the policy cycle.
Building on these, the current TSI project aims to enhance public administration skills on sustainable development and PCSD, including a skills assessment, capacity‑building programme, and training modules to strengthen alignment of ministerial policies with Malta’s SDS and the SDGs.
Malta’s Sustainable Development Strategy for 2050 incorporates a set of Targets and Indicators. Furthermore, the National Statistics Office also developed a website to report on the status of official SDG indicators.
Furthermore, since 2019, Malta has systematically integrated the SDGs into its national budget process, reinforcing its commitment to the 2030 Agenda and the long-term principles outlined in the Sustainable Development Vision for 2050 and the Strategic Priorities outlined in Malta’s Sustainable Development Strategy for 2050. This annual exercise requires all ministries to assess how their proposed budgetary measures, including policies, strategies, projects, and initiatives are contributing to the SDGs.
At the budget measures proposal stage, ministries must demonstrate alignment with sectoral strategies and sustainable development principles, and explicitly identify the relevant SDG, target, and indicator being addressed. Once the budget measures are approved, each Ministry is tasked to submit action plans for implementation and report such implementation, including their quantitative and qualitative impacts on the SDGs, the latter consolidated in Malta’s Annual Progress Reports.
All ministries, departments, entities, and agencies are required to submit annual reports to the Sustainable Development Directorate outlining their contributions to sustainable development. These inputs are consolidated into the Annual Sustainable Development Report, which provides a whole‑of‑government overview of progress and mainstreaming efforts. The final report is tabled in Parliament for discussion.
Malta also presented its Second Voluntary National Review (VNR) in 2025. The VNR was developed through a broad consultation and mapping exercise, supported by a technical working group comprising representatives from across government and the National Statistics Office.
Voluntary National Review: https://sustainabledevelopment.gov.mt/vnr/
2018 Voluntary National Review: 20203Malta_VNR_Final.pdf
Annual Reports: https://sustainabledevelopment.gov.mt/annual-reports/