Fact file
- Form of government: Parliamentary Republic
- Surface area: 316km2
- Population: 520,000 ab. (2021 census)
- Capital city: La Valletta
- Currency: Euro
- Language: English and Maltese (both official)
Geographic features
The archipelago of Malta is located 93 kilometers south of Sicily and is located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea. Although it consists of 11 islands, only the three major islands, namely Malta, Gozo and Comino are inhabited.
Malta is the largest island and together with Gozo it makes up 99% of the total area of the country.
The other eight islands that make up the Maltese archipelago are Cimonotto, Delmarva, Fifa, Halfa, Manoel, Tac-Cawl, Ta' Fraben and São Paulo islands. These are islets or small portions of land next to larger islands, which are not inhabited and receive very few tourists. The islands are made up of mostly flat and hilly terrain, with some cliffs, the maximum elevation is 253 m near Dingli; the archipelago has more than 253 kilometers of coastline. In the country there are neither rivers, nor significant lakes.
Climate
The climate is Mediterranean; because of its position Malta is invested by masses of African air that make the temperatures warmer, especially in summer; rainfall is rare, but in the winter months, the climate is quite humid and rainy, but temperatures remain mild.
Economy
The economy of Malta is among the most advanced economies in Europe. The economic boost of the island was given in 1869, after the opening of the Suez Canal. The primary sector contributes very little to the Maltese economy due to the scarcity of water resources and the lack of arable land.
The secondary sector is developed thanks to shipyards, cigar and beer factories and textile industries; there is also an oil plant to create plastics.
The tertiary sector consists mainly of telecommunications and tourism; tourism is particularly important since 34% of the population is employed in this field, 74.9% of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) that contributes to 15% of the nation's GDP.
Asia Mazzariol and Morena Hu