Safeguarding our heritage for future generations 

Dar il-Gvernatur, Rabat, Għawdex our headquarters

Wirt Għawdex  is a voluntary non-governmental organisation founded in 1981 with the aims of fostering  the knowledge of our heritage amongst all levels of society and to strive to safeguard the natural, archaeological, historical and anthropological patrimony of the islands of Gozo and Comino.  

Our efforts to increase the awareness and love of our history include the holding of regular public lectures, promoting the safeguarding of our heritage in school presentations, issuing publications related to our sites and issuing a quarterly newsletter. We also strive to be vigilant with regards to the enforcement of existing laws in order to protect our natural and built heritage

One of our main focuses today is to lobby the Government and obtain Management Agreements that authorize us to restore heritage sites.  Once restoration is complete,  we continue to manage these sites and open them to the general public. 

The society is a non-profit organisation and its funds are generated mainly  through membership fees, sales of our publications, voluntary contributions and sponsorships and  donations collected through the management of its sites as public and cultural attractions.  All the revenue it generates goes towards the restoration and ongoing conservation of these historical sites.

Wirt Għawdex is governed by a committee elected by its membership and  whose role is to formulate the general policy and safe-guard the aims of  the society as identified in the organisation’s statute. 

The sites we manage are opened for the general public by our volunteers

The office is open on Monday to Friday  08:00 - 11:00 

Dr Joseph Caruana President Wirt GhawdexThe past year and a half has been a challenging time for many, not least for Wirt Għawdex, which also suffered from the restrictions brought about by the prevailing pandemic.

Notwithstanding this, the Wirt Għawdex committee have persevered with the work of the organisation, particularly with the upkeep of sites in the organisation's custody and following of development applications andsubmission of representations to the authorities.

In its commitment to the goal of safeguarding and promoting Gozo's natural, archaeological,historical, and anthropological heritage, the organisation looks ahead to continue fulfilling its role with renewed enthusiasm. Recently, the organisation has also restructured its committee, welcoming Dr Joseph Caruana as its new president and Dr Mark Sagona as a new member on the committee.

For further details please see our press release. You can view all our press releases here

 GRDA Consultation Feedback by Wirt Ghawdex