The Festival de Málaga will once again host the Solidarity Space organised by Malaga City Council -through the Department of Social Rights, Diversity, Equality and Accessibility- in collaboration with la Caixa" Foundation, an initiative that this year celebrates its eighth edition and seeks to promote integration and inclusion.
 
From 7 to 14 March, Plaza de la Merced will once again be the venue chosen to host this Festival space, which will include the participation of more than of the city’s 40 associations and social organisations to bring visibility to their work and promote the inclusion of different groups.
 
The Solidarity Space opening ceremony was attended by the Mayor of Malaga, Francisco de la Torre; the Councillor for Culture and Historical Heritage, Mariana Pineda; the Councillor for Social Rights, Diversity, Equality and Accessibility, Francisco Cantos; the Regional Director of CaixaBank Andalusia, Ceuta and Melilla, Juan Ignacio Zafra; the Regional Manager for Andalusia, Ceuta and Melilla of "la Caixa" Foundation, Juan Carlos Barroso; and the Director of the Festival de Málaga, Juan Antonio Vigar. 
 
Francisco de la Torre opened the presentation by highlighting that the Solidarity Space is now in its eighth edition "with a tent that is bigger every year, which reflects the undoubted success of this space". The mayor also took the opportunity to thank "the Festival organisers for being sensitive to issues that are necessary".
 
Juan Ignacio Zafra stressed that the fact that so many associations are participating in the project is "a real source of pride", adding that "many people are starting to look at this Festival because this is an absolutely differential theme", predicting that the Solidarity Space "will have as much life as the Festival".
 
Juan Carlos Barroso pointed out that the Solidarity Space is a bridge between culture and social issues, "it is a point of reference", adding that for the La Caixa Foundation "it is not a sponsorship, it is a strategic alliance that allows us to build meeting spaces to give visibility to realities that are invisible".
 
Juan Antonio Vigar closed the meeting by stressing that "the strength of the Festival is undoubtedly the city of Malaga. There is no city that embraces its Festival as much as the city of Malaga and the Festival team wants to respond to this impulse and this embrace". As the director pointed out, the Solidarity Space was born eight years ago, with humility but with lots of enthusiasm, wanting to create a space where different realities could be shown, an initiative which Caixabank, La Caixa Foundation and the Social Rights department of Malaga City Council all joined: "little by little and thanks to the will of everyone, this space has been growing and today we are in a space that I, personally, am proud of.
 
This year,the programme maintains its model based on free and open access informative activities promoted by the participating organisations. A cross-cutting proposal that will address social and inclusive issues through screenings, round tables, workshops and concerts.
 
With this new edition, the Solidarity Space is once again consolidating its position as a meeting point at the Festival between culture and social action, promoting the participation and visibility of the city's social groups. This programme will address issues related to childhood, equality, health, the elderly, violence and social integration, among others.
 
Participating associations and entities:
 
•            AFA MÁLAGA
•            AMFAEM
•            AMIAB
•            AMINETU
•            APROINLA
•            AL QUDS ASSOCIATION
•            ALHELÍ ASSOCIATION
•            ARRABAL-AID ASSOCIATION
•            SPANISH ASSOCIATION AGAINST CANCER
•            CIVIC ASSOCIATION FOR PREVENTION
•            DYAR ASSOCIATION
•            SPANISH EMPTY NOSE SYNDROME ASSOCIATION
•            MOROCCAN ASSOCIATION
•            NENA PAINE ASSOCIATION
•            MALAGA PARKINSON’S ASSOCIATION
•            ASSOCIATION FOR THE RECOVERY OF THE HISTORICAL MEMORY OF ALMOGÍA
•            CAIXABANK VOLUNTEER ASSOCIATION
•            CASA RONALD MCDONALD MÁLAGA
•            SPANISH UNHCR COMMITTEE
•            WOMEN'S SECTORAL BOARD OF MALAGA CITY COUNCIL
•            COPAO
•            RED CROSS
•            ANDALUSIAN MENTAL HEALTH FEDERATION
•            ACCEM FOUNDATION
•            ANDRÉS OLIVARES FOUNDATION
•            APA FOUNDATION
•            CUDECA FOUNDATION
•            DON BOSCO FOUNDATION
•            HARENA FOUNDATION
•            HOSPITALARIAS MÁLAGA FOUNDATION
•            HÉROES FOUNDATION
•            SPANISH HAEMATOPOIETIC TRANSPLANT GROUP
•            HOGAR SI
•            IDENTIDAD
•            LIONESSES, THE WILDEST INSTINCT
•            MALAGA FOR REGENERATION
•            PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT
•            PRODUCCIONES ALMARGEN
•            INCORPORA PROGRAMME - LA CAIXA FOUNDATION
•            TELEPHONE OF HOPE
•            UMA
•            UMAREFUGIA