Great Britain formally acquired possession of Malta in 1814. The island staunchly supported the UK through both world wars and remained in the Commonwealth when it became independent in 1964. A decade later Malta became a republic. Since about the mid-1980s, the island has transformed itself into a freight transshipment point, a financial center, and a tourist destination. Malta became an EU member in May 2004 and began using the euro as currency in 2008.

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

slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC

196.8 km (excludes 56 km for the island of Gozo)

Mediterranean; mild, rainy winters; hot, dry summers

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

limestone, salt, arable land

limited natural freshwater resources; increasing reliance on desalination

the country comprises an archipelago, with only the three largest islands (Malta, Ghawdex or Gozo, and Kemmuna or Comino) being inhabited; numerous bays provide good harbors; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration

Maltese (descendants of ancient Carthaginians and Phoenicians with strong elements of Italian and other Mediterranean stock)

Maltese (official) 90.2%, English (official) 6%, multilingual 3%, other 0.8% (2005 census)

Roman Catholic (official) 98%

409,836 (July 2012 est.)

10.31 births/1,000 population (2012 est.)

8.72 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.)

2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)

VALLETTA (capital) 199,000 (2009)

8 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)

1.53 children born/woman (2012 est.)

3.073 physicians/1,000 population (2009)

4.88 beds/1,000 population (2009)

fewer than 500 (2009 est.)

fewer than 100 (2009 est.)

68 localities (Il-lokalita); Attard, Balzan, Birgu, Birkirkara, Birzebbuga, Bormla, Dingli, Fgura, Floriana, Fontana, Ghajnsielem, Gharb, Gharghur, Ghasri Ghaxaq, Gudja, Gzira, Hamrun, Iklin, Imdina, Imgarr, Imqabba, Imsida, Imtarfa, Isla, Kalkara, Kercem, Kirkop, Lija, Luqa, Marsa, Marsaskala, Marsaxlokk, Mellieha, Mosta, Munxar, Nadur, Naxxar, Paola, Pembroke, Pieta, Qala, Qormi, Qrendi, Rabat, Rabat (Ghawdex), Safi, San Giljan/Saint Julian, San Gwann/Saint John, San Lawrenz/Saint Lawrence, Sannat, San Pawl il-Bahar/Saint Paul's Bay, Santa Lucija/Saint Lucia, Santa Venera/Saint Venera, Siggiewi, Sliema, Swieqi, Tarxien, Ta' Xbiex, Valletta, Xaghra, Xewkija, Xghajra, Zabbar, Zebbug, Zebbug (Ghawdex), Zejtun, Zurrieq

21 September 1964 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 21 September (1964); Republic Day, 13 December (1974)

1964; amended many times

mixed legal system of English common law and civil law (based on the Roman and Napoleonic civil codes)

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

unicameral House of Representatives (normally 65 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation by the Single Transferrable Vote (STV) to serve five-year terms; note - the parliament elected in 2008 is composed of 69 seats; when the political party winning an absolute majority of first-count votes (or a plurality of first-count votes in an election where only two parties are represented in parliament) does not win an absolute majority of seats, the constitution provides for the winning party to be awarded additional number of seats in parliament to guarantee it an absolute majority; in the event that more than two parties are represented in parliament, with none acquiring the absolute majority of votes, the party winning the majority of seats prevails

Constitutional Court; Court of First Instance; Court of Appeal

Alternativa Demokratika/Alliance for Social Justice or AD [Michael BRIGUGLIO]; Labor Party or PL [Joseph MUSCAT]; Nationalist Party or PN [Lawrence GONZI]; The Malta Communist Party [Victor DEGIOVANNI]

Alleanza Liberali-Demokratika Maltra or ALDM (for divorce, abortion, gay marriage, the rights existent in other EU member states); Alternattiva Demokratika (pro-environment); Flimkien Ghal-Ambjent Ahjar (pro-environment); Ghazda tal-Konsumaturi (consumer rights)

Australia Group, C, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina (observer), UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

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; according to legend, the colors are taken from the red and white checkered banner of Count Roger of Sicily who removed a bi-colored corner and granted it to Malta in 1091; an uncontested explanation is that the colors are those of the Knights of Saint John who ruled Malta from 1530 to 1798; in 1942, King George VI of the United Kingdom awarded the George Cross to the islanders for their exceptional bravery and gallantry in World War II; since independence in 1964, the George Cross bordered in red has appeared directly on the white field

Malta produces only about 20% of its food needs, has limited fresh water supplies, and has few domestic energy sources. Malta's geographic position between Europe and North Africa makes it a target for illegal immigration, which has strained Malta's political and economic resources. Malta's fertility rate is below the EU average, and population growth in recent years has largely been from immigration, putting increasing pressure on the pension system. Malta adopted the euro on 1 January 2008. Malta's economy is dependent on foreign trade, manufacturing, and tourism, and was hurt by the global economic downturn. Malta has low unemployment relative to other European countries, and growth has recovered since the 2009 recession. Malta's financial services industry has grown in recent years and in 2008-09 it escaped significant damage from the international financial crisis, largely because the sector is centered on the indigenous real estate market and is not highly leveraged and the banking system is closely regulated. Fiscal stimulus measures contributed to a deterioration in Malta's public finances in 2011, leading the EU to warn Malta that it would risk sanctions if it failed to bring its deficit and debt levels within EU guidelines. Moody's downgraded Malta's sovereign credit rating in September 2011.

$10.89 billion (2011 est.)

$10.67 billion (2010 est.)

$10.44 billion (2009 est.)

$8.896 billion (2011 est.)

16.8% of GDP (2011 est.)

51.2% of GDP (2011 est.)

12.7% of GDP (2011 est.)

70.4% of GDP (2011 est.)

69% of GDP (2010 est.)

1.75% (31 December 2011)

1.75% (31 December 2010)

4.75% (31 December 2011 est.)

4.617% (31 December 2010 est.)

$6.952 billion (31 December 2011 est.)

$7.046 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$14.22 billion (31 December 2011 est.)

$12.5 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$22.38 billion (31 December 2011)

$20.13 billion (31 December 2010)

$3.424 billion (31 December 2011)

$2.399 billion (31 December 2010)

$1.982 billion (31 December 2009)

potatoes, cauliflower, grapes, wheat, barley, tomatoes, citrus, cut flowers, green peppers; pork, milk, poultry, eggs

tourism, electronics, ship building and repair, construction, food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, footwear, clothing, tobacco, aviation services, financial services, information technology services

-$352 million (2011 est.)

-$342 million (2010 est.)

$5.204 billion (2011 est.)

$3.091 billion (2010 est.)

machinery and mechanical appliances; mineral fuels, oils and products; pharmaceutical products; printed books and newspapers; aircraft/spacecraft and parts thereof; toys, games, and sports requisites

Germany 14.8%, France 9.3%, Italy 6.9%, UK 6.9% (2009 est.)

$7.336 billion (2011 est.)

$6.022 billion (2010 est.)

mineral fuels, oils and products; electrical machinery; aircraft/spacecraft and parts thereof; machinery and mechanical appliances; plastic and other semi-manufactured goods; vehicles and parts thereof

Italy 31.8%, France 8.6%, UK 8%, Germany 6.9% (2009 est.)

$515.5 million (31 December 2011 est.)

$540.2 million (31 December 2010 est.)

$48.79 billion (30 June 2011)

$5.978 billion (31 December 2010)

$17.25 billion (31 December 2010)

$9.019 billion (31 December 2009)

$1.213 billion (2010 est.)

euros (EUR) per US dollar -

2.168 billion kWh (2011)

1.991 billion kWh (2010)

571,500 kW (2009 est.)

99.7% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

0.3% of total installed capacity (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2011 est.)

0 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2012 est.)

0 bbl/day (2008 est.)

19,520 bbl/day (2011 est.)

0 bbl/day (2008 est.)

36,580 bbl/day (2008 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2012 est.)

3.114 million Mt (2010 est.)

2 publicly-owned TV stations, Television Malta (TVM) broadcasting nationally plus an educational channel; several privately-owned national television stations, two of which are owned by political parties; Italian and British broadcast programs are available; multi-channel cable and satellite TV services are available; publicly-owned radio broadcaster operates 1 station; roughly 20 commercial radio stations (2011)

Marsaxlokk (Malta Freeport), Valletta

Armed Forces of Malta (AFM; includes air and maritime elements) (2010)

17 years 6 months of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2011)

0.7% of GDP (2006 est.)

minor transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Western Europe