Malta’s global ‘hidden gem’ – Evarist Bartolo
If you run a Google search for digital diplomacy, cyber diplomacy or internet governance, you will likely see a link to DiploFoundation on the top of the list. This Maltese-Swiss organisation is a key global player in digitalisation and international relations. Apart from Google – which is a reliable indicator of the relevance of an organisation’s resources, a sort of digital vox populi – I discovered Diplo’s global impact in my work as foreign minister. Whichever country I visit, I will likely encounter one of Diplo’s 6,000 alumni – mainly diplomats and officials, hailing from 202 countries and territories. Diplo’s alumni occupy executive positions in diplomatic centres, such as the UN Economic Commission for Europe. They are ambassadors or highly ranked officials in foreign ministries and missions around the world. Equally important, many of Diplo’s former students hail from small island states. Given the number of trained people from the Pacific and Caribbean region, Diplo is considered to be the ‘diplomatic academy of small states’; this is a highly respected foundation across all divides of the modern world. You can hear of Diplo among technologists in Silicon Valley,...