1995 Edition

Area

total area: 320 sq km land area: 320 sq km comparative area: slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC

Climate

Mediterranean with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers

Coastline

140 km

Environment

current issues: very limited natural fresh water resources; increasing reliance on desalination natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Climate Change, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Desertification

International disputes

Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration

Irrigated land

10 sq km (1989)

Land boundaries

0 km

Land use

arable land: 38% permanent crops: 3% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 59%

Location

Southern Europe, islands in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Sicily (Italy)

Map references

Europe

Maritime claims

contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 25 nm territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources

limestone, salt

Note

the country comprises an archipelago, with only the 3 largest islands (Malta, Gozo, and Comino) being inhabited; numerous bays provide good harbors

Terrain

mostly low, rocky, flat to dissected plains; many coastal cliffs

Age structure

0-14 years: 22% (female 39,199; male 41,581) 15-64 years: 67% (female 123,665; male 124,167) 65 years and over: 11% (female 23,597; male 17,400) (July 1995 est.)

Birth rate

13.22 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate

7.43 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Ethnic divisions

Arab, Sicilian, Norman, Spanish, Italian, English

Infant mortality rate

7.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Labor force

127,200 by occupation: government (excluding job corps) 37%, services 26%, manufacturing 22%, training programs 9%, construction 4%, agriculture 2% (1990)

Languages

Maltese (official), English (official)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 77.02 years male: 74.75 years female: 79.48 years (1995 est.)

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1985) total population: 84% male: 86% female: 82%

Nationality

noun: Maltese (singular and plural) adjective: Maltese

Net migration rate

1.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Population

369,609 (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate

0.75% (1995 est.)

Religions

Roman Catholic 98%

Total fertility rate

1.92 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Administrative divisions

none (administration directly from Valletta)

Capital

Valletta

Constitution

1964 constitution substantially amended on 13 December 1974

Digraph

MT

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission: Ambassador Albert Borg Olivier DE PUGET chancery: 2017 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 462-3611, 3612

Executive branch

chief of state: President Ugo MIFSUD BONNICI (since 4 April 1994) head of government: Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dr. Edward (Eddie) FENECH ADAMI (since 12 May 1987); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Guido DE MARCO (since 14 May 1987) cabinet: Cabinet; appointed by the president on advice of the prime minister

FAX

[1] (202) 387-5470 consulate(s): New York

[356] 243229

Flag

two equal vertical bands of white (hoist side) and red; in the upper hoist-side corner is a representation of the George Cross, edged in red

House of Representatives

elections last held 22 February 1992 (next to be held by February 1997); results - NP 51.8%, MLP 46.5%; seats - (usually 65 total) MLP 36, NP 29; note - additional seats are given to the party with the largest popular vote to ensure a legislative majority; current total: 69 (MLP 33, NP 36 after adjustment)

Independence

21 September 1964 (from UK)

Judicial branch

Constitutional Court, Court of Appeal

Legal system

based on English common law and Roman civil law; has accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Legislative branch

unicameral

Member of

C, CCC, CE, EBRD, ECE, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Names

conventional long form: Republic of Malta conventional short form: Malta

National holiday

Independence Day, 21 September (1964)

Political parties and leaders

Nationalist Party (NP), Edward FENECH ADAMI; Malta Labor Party (MLP), Alfred SANT

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Type

parliamentary democracy

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission: Ambassador Joseph R. PAOLINO, Jr. embassy: 2nd Floor, Development House, Saint Anne Street, Floriana, Malta mailing address: P. O. Box 535, Valletta telephone: [356] 235960

Agriculture

accounts for 3% of GDP and 2% of the work force (1992); overall, 20% self-sufficient; main products - potatoes, cauliflower, grapes, wheat, barley, tomatoes, citrus, cut flowers, green peppers, hogs, poultry, eggs; generally adequate supplies of vegetables, poultry, milk, pork products; seasonal or periodic shortages in grain, animal fodder, fruits, other basic foodstuffs

Budget

revenues: $1.4 billion expenditures: $1.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $215 million (FY94/95 est.)

Currency

1 Maltese lira (LM) = 100 cents

Economic aid

recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-81), $172 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $336 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $76 million; Communist countries (1970-88), $48 million

Electricity

capacity: 250,000 kW production: 1.1 billion kWh consumption per capita: 2,749 kWh (1993)

Exchange rates

Maltese liri (LM) per US$1 - 0.3656 (January 1995), 0.3776 (1994), 0.3821 (1993), 0.3178 (1992), 0.3226 (1991), 0.3172 (1990)

Exports

$1.3 billion (f.o.b., 1993) commodities: machinery and transport equipment, clothing and footware, printed matter partners: Italy 32%, Germany 16%, UK 8%

External debt

$603 million (1992)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

Illicit drugs

transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Western Europe

Imports

$2.1 billion (c.i.f., 1993) commodities: food, petroleum, machinery and semimanufactured goods partners: Italy 27%, Germany 14%, UK 13%, US 9%

Industrial production

growth rate 5.4% (1992); accounts for 27% of GDP

Industries

tourism, electronics, ship repairyard, construction, food manufacturing, textiles, footwear, clothing, beverages, tobacco

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

5% (1994 est.)

National product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $3.9 billion (1994 est.)

National product per capita

$10,760 (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate

4.4% (1994 est.)

Overview

Significant resources are limestone, a favorable geographic location, and a productive labor force. Malta produces only about 20% of its food needs, has limited freshwater supplies, and has no domestic energy sources. Consequently, the economy is highly dependent on foreign trade and services. Manufacturing and tourism are the largest contributors to the economy. Manufacturing accounts for about 24% of GDP, with the electronics and textile industries major contributors and with the state-owned Malta drydocks employing about 4,300 people. In 1994, over 1,000,000 tourists visited the island. Per capita GDP of $10,760 places Malta in the range of the less affluent EU countries.

Unemployment rate

4.5% (March 1994)

Radio

broadcast stations: AM 8, FM 4, shortwave 0 radios: NA

Telephone system

153,000 telephones; automatic system satisfies normal requirements local: NA intercity: submarine cable and microwave radio relay between islands international: 1 submarine cable and 1 INTELSAT (Atlantic Ocean) earth station

Television

broadcast stations: 2 televisions: NA

Airports

total: 1 with paved runways over 3,047 m: 1

Highways

total: 1,291 km paved: asphalt 1,179 km unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 77 km; earth 35 km

Merchant marine

total: 964 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 15,518,359 GRT/26,604,739 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 3, bulk 272, cargo 300, chemical tanker 30, combination bulk 26, combination ore/oil 16, container 33, liquefied gas tanker 3, multifunction large-load carrier 3, oil tanker 191, passenger 7, passenger-cargo 3, railcar carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 14, roll-on/roll-off cargo 26, short-sea passenger 20, specialized tanker 5, vehicle carrier 11 note: a flag of convenience registry; includes 49 countries; the 10 major fleet flags are: Greece 351 ships, Russia 66, Croatia 63, Switzerland 31, Montenegro 29, Italy 27, Germany 23, Monaco 20, UK 20, and Georgia 10

Ports

Marsaxlokk, Valletta

Railroads

0 km

Branches

Armed Forces, Maltese Police Force

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $21.4 million, about 0.9% of GDP (FY92/93) ________________________________________________________________________ MAN, ISLE OF (British crown dependency)

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 98,525; males fit for military service 78,305 (1995 est.)