Visit of the Lord Mayor of Westminster and the Lady Mayoress,
Councillor and Mrs Duncan Sandys
University of Malta, Msida Campus
0900hrs • 3rd May 2010
Honourable Minister, High Commissioners, the Lord Mayor and the Lady
Mayoress, distinguished guests and colleagues...
Good morning!
I am delighted that we have this opportunity today to reflect upon the events that
took place on this very site nearly forty-six years ago, the day after Malta became
an Independent state. On that day, the 22 nd of September 1964, the Rt. Hon.
Duncan Sandys, the then Commonwealth Secretary, laid here the Foundation
Stone of the new campus of the University of Malta.
Today we are pleased to welcome you Councillor Sandys to what has become
the main campus of the University of Malta which we have built, and are still
building, on the foundation stone laid by your grand-father at an important
juncture in the history of this nation and of this alma mater.
Though the University of Malta traces its roots to the Collegium Melitense in the
late 16th century and was housed originally in a beautiful building, built by the
Jesuits, in Valletta… as reported in the Times of Malta of Wednesday 23 rd
September 1964, and I quote “with the continuously increasing demand for larger
and better laboratories which modern science calls for, and with the development
in teaching and research in all faculties, the need for bigger and more suitable
premises for the University have been felt in the last two decades”.
Indeed, certain things never change! As is apparent judging from the increasing
number of cranes on campus, we are in the process of building and equipping
new teaching and research facilities to continue to accommodate the growing
1
student population that has now exceeded 10,000. Today our students can
choose to read from amongst a vast portfolio of undergraduate and postgraduate
degree programmes offered across eleven faculties and a growing number of
multidisciplinary centres and institutes.
I believe that it is very significant that the United Kingdom chose to endow this
island nation, on the occasion of its independence, with the initial capital monies
to start building this campus on circa 70 acres of land acquired by the
Government of the time for this purpose. I believe that the investment has paid
off, and indeed I go as far as to claim that without the significant achievements
that have taken place on this campus since, this country would surely not have
faired quite as well. I am pleased to note that the correlation between tertiary
education and socio-economic wellbeing continues to be acknowledged to this
day… and I trust that our alumni will continue to be the backbone supporting
Malta’s prosperity for many years to come.
But before this Rector gets carried away about our outstanding past and our
bright future, as it is only just about half past nine on a Monday morning, and I
know that we all have a rather full day ahead of us, on a note of warm gratitude
to our forefathers, for having the foresight to leave us this beloved legacy, I invite
the string quintet to take up their cue and grace this occasion with their music.
Juanito Camilleri
Rector
2