Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1547312
6 COMMERCIAL maltatoday | SUNDAY • 25 OCTOBER 2026 BOV wins WSBI-ESBG Award for inclusive banking and social impact FOR a second consecutive year, Bank of Valletta has been rec- ognised for 'Excellence in Inclu- sive Banking and Social Impact' at the the WSBI-ESBG Awards. Presented during the second edi- tion of the international awards in Thailand, the recognition highligted the Bank's tangible contribution towards advanc- ing the United Nations Social Development Goals. The World Savings and Retail Banking In- stitute (WSBI) and the Europe- an Savings Bank Group (ESBG), jointly set up an international banking network representing savings and retail banks globally through WSBI and at European level through ESBG, particularly in policy, regulatory, financial-in- clusion and responsible-banking matters. Bank of Valletta CEO, Kenneth Farrugia, received the award from Mr Peter Simon, Chief Executive Officer of the World Savings and Retail Banking Institute. BOV's nomination focused on a number of social initiatives undertaken during 2025, which strengthened the Bank's role as a cornerstone of national solidarity through target- ed investment and long-standing partnerships with trusted NGOs. The initiatives recognised in- clude the Bank's annual support to the Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation through its do- nation to L-Istrina and the BOV Piggy Bank Campaign, its partner- ship with Richmond Foundation in support of Mental Health First Aid Programmes, which reached 6,747 students and 441 educators across Malta and Gozo, and its long-term partnership with Hos- pice Malta, which supports more than 1,500 families every year. BOV is also funding the refur- bishment of a residential hall at St Michael Hospice and supporting Hospice Malta's Job Shadowing Programme. The nomination fur- ther highlighted the Bank's part- nership with Julian's Pathfinder Foundation, supporting gifted and often underserved learners through residential, small-group and expert-led programmes. Reacting to the recognition, Kenneth Farrugia said, "At Bank of Valletta, social responsibility is not an activity that runs along- side our business; it is an integral part of who we are. This award acknowledges the passion and dedication of our employees and partners, who continue to invest their time, skills, and energy in initiatives that make a meaningful difference to vulnerable members of society. Receiving this award once again is a source of en- couragement and reinforces our belief that meaningful change is achieved through sustained com- mitment. Over the years, we have continued to expand our support for communities through volun- teering, philanthropy, and strate- gic partnerships. The BOV Foun- dation continues to play a pivotal role in the Bank's wider social re- sponsibility efforts, complement- ing the work of our CSR team and supporting initiatives that address real community needs." The full SDG 2026 Report is available on https://www.ws- b i - e s b g . o r g / w p - c o n t e n t / u p - loads/2026/10/SDG-2026.pdf BOV CEO Kenneth Farrugia (centre) alongside WSBI Vice President Prof. Ulrich Reuter (left), and WSBI CEO Peter Simon (right) SWIEQI United FC recently presented policy recommen- dations for a national Talent Identification Framework (TIF) for sport in Malta to Graham Bencini, Shadow Minister for Sport, at Parliament in Valletta. The recommendations come from GOAL – Growing Outstand- ing Athletic Leaders, an Erasmus+ Sport Small-scale Collaborative Partnership co-funded by the Eu- ropean Union (Grant Agreement No. 101245308). Swieqi United FC (Malta) leads the project in partnership with HAN University of Applied Sciences (the Nether- lands) and Union Plaani (Finland). GOAL's starting point is that Malta does not yet have a struc- tured system for identifying and developing young sporting talent. Selection often depends on in- formal, club-level judgement. In a small island state with a limited talent pool, every young athlete who is overlooked or released too early is a loss to the national sport system. The policy paper sets out 12 recommendations for Malta and 8 for the European Commission. It proposes a framework that: as- sesses future potential as well as current performance, so that early physical maturity does not decide who gets selected, addresses the relative age effect and differences in growth and maturation, which can disadvantage later-developing children, uses longitudinal track- ing, performance profiles and ob- jective observation tools alongside coaches' judgement, trains coach- es and scouts to recognise and reduce bias, and adds nutrition education and builds in athlete wellbeing, safeguarding, gender equity and data protection from the start. Football is the pilot sport, but the recommended framework should serve as a blueprint that other sports in Malta can adapt. The recommendations draw on international research on talent identification in emerging football nations, and on Dutch and Finn- ish practice. They are adapted to Malta's scale and resources rather than copied from larger countries. The recommendations also call for stronger links between schools, clubs and national sport bodies, so that talent is not missed simply because a child is not yet part of a club academy. Building on this, Swieqi United FC believes that physical education teachers should be involved in the frame- work and trained to recognise po- tential and to guide young people towards the right pathway. Swieqi United FC has also re- quested meetings with the Min- ister for Education and Sport, the Hon. Byron Camilleri, and with the Malta Football Association. The club looks forward to pre- senting the initiative to both and to working together to take the recommended framework for- ward at national level. Swieqi United FC presents national talent identification proposals to Graham Bencini The Phoenicia Malta retains European title, joins The Ritz on world shortlist THE Phoenicia Malta has been named Europe's Leading Land- mark Hotel at the World Trav- el Awards for the second year running. General Manager Robyn Pratt accepted the award on behalf of The Phoenicia Malta at the World Travel Awards Europe Gala, held in Montenegro on 17 October 2026 as part of the awards' 33rd edition. While the hotel keeps the Eu- ropean title, it is also one of 10 nominees for World's Leading Landmark Hotel 2026, along- side The Ritz London and Bel- mond's Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro. This year, The Phoenicia Mal- ta also retained its Michelin Key and ranked fifth among hotels in Central and Southern Eu- rope in the Condé Nast Trav- eler Readers' Choice Awards. The World Travel Awards' global winners will be named at the Grand Final in Tanzania in December, following a voting process open to travel profes- sionals and the public. More information about The Phoenicia Malta is avail- able at www.phoeniciamal- ta.com. The online vote for World's Leading Landmark Hotel 2026 continues until 30 October at www.worldtravel- awards.com/vote.