malta

CORINTHIA HOTELS ANNOUNCES COMPLETION OF TWO ADDITIONAL CLEAN WATER PROJECTS IN TANZANIA AND ZAMBIA, WITH JUST A DROP, INTERNATIONAL WATER AID CHARITY

Two rural communities in Zambia and Tanzania have benefited from the generous support of Corinthia Hotels, following the completion of clean water projects implemented by international water aid charity, Just a Drop. This marks a total of five Corinthia supported Just a Drop projects which have brought life-changing clean water to a total of 45,325 children and families over the past three years.

Alfred Pisani, Founder and Group Chairman of Corinthia Hotels, said, “We at Corinthia are proud to play a small part. Through our on-going support of Just a Drop, we have been able to make a difference, by providing life sustaining clean drinking water for five villages already in Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. Most of us take clean water for granted, but for these villagers this very basic part of life is a daily struggle. Corinthia Hotels looks forward to continuing to make a positive contribution, village by village, to the health and well-being of these children and their families, hopefully leading to brighter futures.”

In Zambia, the communities of Luini-Kabalu and Malaya in the Copperbelt province were each provided with boreholes to alleviate access to clean, safe water. Prior to the project, villagers had to rely on unprotected shallow wells or swamps to collect water which carried the risk of disease, not to mention a round-trip of 90 minutes to reach them.

Peter Marsh, Project Engineer for Just a Drop visited the project following its completion in February. He met 17 year old Ester Mwaza from Malaya Village: “Ester had lost both of her parents and now lives with her aunt and her four young grandchildren. The family uses 80 litres of water a day and are very grateful that they no longer have to walk long distances to collect it. When Ester was younger, she had to stop going to school as there simply wasn’t enough time in the day, once she had collected enough water for her family’s daily needs.”

Peter also met the secretary of the Luini-Kabalu Water and Sanitation Hygiene training committee, Frederick Mwelwa. He said, “Frederick felt they’d had good training and was very comfortable that the committee would be able to maintain the borehole and pump.”

Kingazi Village, near Tanzania’s capital, Dar es Salaam, also benefitted from a borehole and piped water supply thanks also to the support of Corinthia Hotels. The project provided distribution points around the village, including one at the local primary school. As a result, women and children will no longer have to walk (on average) 9km to collect water, which means they will be able to better spend their time on income generating activities or education. Eight year old Neema Johnson from Kingazi Primary School said, “Thank you for bringing water to our school. Now we will not be going out of school during break time to buy water.”

Fiona Jeffery OBE, Chairman and Founder, Just a Drop said, “Corinthia Hotels has now supported five clean water projects with Just a Drop which we value hugely. The partnership has made a positive and real difference to people’s lives through the provision of clean water. Thank you on behalf of everyone at Just a Drop; we look forward to supporting further communities in need in partnership with Corinthia Hotels.

(Forimmediaterelease.net)

MALTA - The five-star Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa in Malta was named Headquarter Hotel for the first International Conference on Archaeoacoustics: The Archaeology of Sound, February 19-22, 2014. The groundbreaking multi-disciplinary event is being organized by the Old Temple Study Foundation (OSTF), in association with the University of Malta.

The 2014 Archaeoacoustics International Conference in Malta is expected to draw academics, researchers, musicologists and individuals in different fields from around the world. The event will explore new technology in archaeology for identifying unusual sound behavior of the world's oldest buildings, including Malta’s remarkable megalithic temples, such as the world famous Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Linda Eneix, founder of OTSF, said: “Our goal during this event is to pull together information and experience from a wide range of sources, seeking a thread that identifies the most fundamental application of the human experience of hearing. We are particularly interested in the role that acoustic behavior may have had in the development and design of important architecture and ritual spaces throughout the ancient world. Archaeology often focuses on the visual and on physical objects, although the past was of course not silent.”

“The Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa is proud to host such a prestigious conference and we are looking forward to welcoming delegates to Malta from all parts of the globe. Our location is ideal, across from the Presidential Palace and midway between two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Malta’s capital, Valletta and the silent city of Mdina,” said David Woodward, General Manager. Originally built in the 19th century as a luxury private villa, the Corinthia Palace’s grand design and immaculately-landscaped gardens are an oasis of serenity. It features a health and wellness spa, the Athenaeum; several dining options including the original elegant Villa Corinthia, as well as the Rickshaw, with an Asian-fusion menu. The conference package includes five nights’ accommodation at the Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa, meals and exclusive excursions.

For information and registration, visit www.otsf.org/conference.htm .

ABOUT CORINTHIA HOTELS

Corinthia is a collection of hotels founded by the Pisani family of Malta. Corinthia, in its 50th year, is a family-inspired business, with family values underpinning the Spirit of Corinthia, meaning that we look out for one another, support one another and positively encourage one another. As a hotel business, we focus on giving honest, discreet service. We see ourselves as craftsmen in the world of hospitality, valuing authenticity, passion, precision and understanding. Each of the hotels and resorts we have created in some of the most exciting places in the world is a tribute to local architecture and cultural traditions. The Corinthia portfolio includes the recently-opened flagship Corinthia Hotel in London, as well as award-winning Corinthia Hotels in Budapest, Malta, Prague, St Petersburg, Tripoli and Lisbon. Corinthia Hotels is owned by International Hotel Investments (IHI), a publicly-traded company in Malta. CHI Hotels & Resorts Limited is a wholly-owned member of the IHI Group which manages Corinthia Hotels. For more information, please visit www.corinthia.com .

ABOUT MALTA

The sunny islands of Malta, in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, are home to a most remarkable concentration of intact built heritage, including the highest density of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in any nation-state anywhere. Malta's patrimony in stone ranges from the oldest free-standing stone architecture in the world, to one of the British Empire's most formidable defensive systems, and includes a rich mix of domestic, religious and military architecture from the ancient, medieval and early modern periods. Some of them have a role to play in future research in Archaeoacoustics. Average February temperatures: high 60F and low 49F. www.visitmalta.com

ABOUT THE OLD TEMPLE STUDY FOUNDATION (OTSF)

Based in the United States and Malta, OTSF operates highly successful educational travel programming for North Americans in the Maltese Islands. Its activities have caused enormous economic benefit through tourism. Additionally, this non-profit foundation has contributed over US$300,000 to the archaeology Laboratory of University of Malta, various research projects, and philanthropic conservation and heritage awareness initiatives around the world. www.otsf.org

PHOTO: Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa

MEDIA CONTACT: Manuel Briffa, Director of Public Relations, Corinthia Hotels, Tel: +356 2551 1146, Mobile: +356 9943 2252 , Email: manuel.briffa@corinthia.com , www.corinthia.com

The Republic of Malta consists of an archipelago situated centrally in the Mediterranean, 93 km south of Sicily and 288 km north-east of Tunisia, with Gibraltar 1,826 km to the west and Alexandria 1,510 km to the east.

Malta covers just over 300 km. Its capital is Valletta and the largest city is Birkirkara. Maltese is the national language and a co-official language, alongside English.

Throughout history, Malta's location has given it great strategic importanceand a sequence of powers including the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Fatimids, Sicilians, Knights of St John, French and British have all ruled the islands. Malta gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1964 and became a Republic in 1974, whilst retaining membership in the Commonwealth of Nations. It is a member of the United Nations (since 1964) and a member of the European Union (since 2004). Malta is also party to the Schengen Agreement (since 2007)[9] and member of the eurozone (since 2008).

Malta has a long Christian legacy and is an Apostolic See. According to the Acts of the Apostles, St. Paul was shipwrecked on "Melite", which many Bible scholars identify with Malta, and ministered there. Catholicism continues to be the official and dominant religion in Malta. Malta is known for its world heritage sites, most prominently the Megalithic Temples which are the oldest free-standing structures in Europe.

Based in Malta, CHI Hotels & Resorts (CHI) is a leading hands-on hotel management company that provides the full range of technical assistance and management services to hotel owners worldwide. CHI is the exclusive operator and developer for the luxury Corinthia Hotels brand as well as the Wyndham and Ramada Plaza brands in Europe, Africa and The Middle East. The Company draws on a heritage of over 45 years in delivering high quality services to hotel guests and an optimum rate of return to owners and investors in diverse business environments. Our experience across our three brands extends to management of luxury and upscale properties in city and resort locations and products ranging from boutique to conference and Spa hotels. CHI also operates various restaurants under brands such as 'Rickshaw' and has its own Spa division. CHI has won the coveted title of 'Leading Provider of Travel Deals, Europe' at the 'Travelzoo Awards 2008' gala ceremony held recently in Chicago, USA. CHI Hotels & Resorts is a joint venture between International Hotel Investments plc (IHI) &endash; 70% and The Wyndham Hotel Group (WHG) &endash; 30%.