Training of Public Officers
As part of the END-RACISM-MT project, training on anti-racism to public officers hailing from all Ministries has started being delivered by Kopin. The aim of this training is to assist public officers in mainstreaming anti-racism across all sectors and to support them in fostering change and improving their response to (multiple and intersectional) discrimination, racism and xenophobia. It will raise awareness on the importance of anti-racism and anti-racist behavior, while also providing an opportunity to exchange strategies and a variety of ways of combating racism and discrimination.
This initiative is being led by the Human Rights Directorate in collaboration with the project partner Kopin and the full support of the Institute for Public Services.
The first training to public officers was held in March 2023, with 500 public officers to be trained over the span of two years. A total of 10 sessions will take place throughout 2023, reaching 250 public officers within the year.
Anti-Racism Platform meetings
The civil society-led Anti-Racism Platform (ARP) is an important initiative to provide a platform for civil society to monitor the implementation of the Anti-Racism Strategy and the END-RACISM-MT project, thereby building trust between communities and public authorities.
The ARP was originally an initiative set up by the HRD in 2021, funded by the Embassy of the United States in Malta. Its first meeting was held on the 22nd of July of that same year, and it was followed by another three meetings that brought together various civil society stakeholders around this relevant initiative.
The Platform is the 3rd Measure of Malta’s Anti-Racism Strategy 2021-2023. It is described as follows: “An Anti-Racism Platform will be convened and supported by the Human Rights Directorate. It will be composed of representatives from civil society, academia, and the social partners. It will serve to enable: shared leadership for the implementation of this Strategy across all sectors; ongoing dialogue with key partners on the content, direction, and impact of this Strategy; and Critical reflection on the ongoing implementation of this Strategy to serve its ongoing evolution as found to be required.”
In the course of 2022, a number of ARP meetings were held which have taken up steam in 2023 and shall continue throughout the course of the project.
Inter-Ministerial Committee Meetings
The Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) meetings bring together representatives from the HRD, NCPE and representatives from each Ministry to espouse the whole-of-government approach of the project.
The aim of the IMC is the creation of intra-ministerial anti-racism action plans (IMARAPs,) which are highlighted in Measure 6 of the Anti-Racism Strategy and will be developed to ensure mainstreaming of anti-racism in the internal affairs of each ministry, thereby enabling the improvement of public authorities’ response to racism in Malta. The development of such action plans to prevent and combat racism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance in public services i.e. structural racism, are key in designing and implementing a good NAPAR.
The IMC is the 2nd measure of Malta’s Anti-Racism Strategy:
A high-level inter-ministerial committee, convened by the Human Rights Directorate and including the equality body, will hold frequent and regular meetings to ensure:
- A whole-of-Government approach to anti-racism and intercultural inclusion to reach all policy fields and public services;
- Mainstreaming of anti-racism and intercultural inclusion across all policy fields and public services; and
- Enabling of peer support, mutual exchange and stimulus for best practice