Malta, at the crossroads between Europe, Africa and the Middle East has always attracted settlers from different cultures, ideologies, and beliefs. Malta’s history remains proof of how diversity has been engrained into the local population, with recent developments towards LGBTIQ+ equality being praised by the international community. Malta continues to rank first in ILGA-Europe’s Rainbow Map Index since 2015.

This year, in hosting EuroPride Valletta 2023, we take advantage of Malta’s geographic location and historical standing to discuss beyond LGBTIQ+ equality in Europe. This LGBTIQ+ Human Rights Conference aims at building bridges across the Mediterranean Sea and seeks to take stock of the progress and challenges in the advancement of LGBTIQ+ rights in this geographic region. All this, while creating an opportunity to share experiences and good practices in order to strengthen and identify room for improvement in the efforts towards LGBTIQ+ equality and non-discrimination.

The sessions will recognise the multi-faceted lives of LGBTIQ+ persons and will in fact discuss persisting themes which remain relevant to the community internationally.

The conference is organised by the Human Rights Directorate (HRD) within the Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms and Equality under the auspices of EuroPride Valletta 2023 hosted by Allied Rainbow Communities (ARC).