STATISTICS: MALTA

Malta Official name: Malta (Maltese); Malta (English). Form of government: unitary multiparty republic with one legislative house (House of Representatives ). Chief of state: President. Head of government: Prime Minister. Capital: Valletta. Official languages: Maltese; English. Official religion: Roman Catholicism. Monetary unit: 1 Maltese lira (Lm) = 100 cents = 1,000 mils; valuation{2} (Sept. 25, 1998) 1 U.S.$ = Lm 0.38; 1 = Lm 0.65. Demography Population (1998): 377,000. Density (1998): persons per sq mi 3,090, persons per sq km 1,193. Urban-rural (1996): urban 89.7%; rural 10.3%. Sex distribution (1996{3}): male 49.53%; female 50.47%. Age breakdown (1996{3}): under 15, 21.6%; 15-29, 21.3%; 30-44, 22.7%; 45-59, 18.8%; 60-74, 11.5%; 75 and over, 4.1%. Population projection: (2000) 382,000; (2010) 393,000. Doubling time: 136 years. Ethnic composition (by nationality; 1990): Maltese 95.7%; British 2.1%; other 2.2%. Religious affiliation (1996): Roman Catholic 93.4%; other 6.6%. Major cities (1996{3}): Birkirkara 22,055; Qormi 20,173; Hamrun 13,624; Sliema 13,470; Valletta 9,128. Vital statistics Birth rate per 1,000 population (1996): 12.2 (world avg. 25.0); (1995) legitimate 95.8%; illegitimate 4.2%. Death rate per 1,000 population (1996): 7.5 (world avg. 9.3). Natural increase rate per 1,000 population (1996): 4.7 (world avg. 15.7). Total fertility rate (avg. births per childbearing woman; 1995): 1.8. Marriage rate per 1,000 population (1995): 6.2. Divorce rate per 1,000 population: n.a. Life expectancy at birth (1995): male 74.9 years; female 79.5 years. Major causes of death per 100,000 population (1995): diseases of the circulatory system 313.0; malignant neoplasms 197.1; diseases of the respiratory system 61.5; endocrine and metabolic diseases of the blood 28.3; diseases of the digestive system 26.4; accidents, poisoning, and violence 25.6. National economy Budget (1997). Revenue: Lm 476,945,000 (direct taxes 44.2%; indirect taxes 39.9%; nontax revenue 13.7%; foreign grants 2.2%). Expenditures: Lm 567,645,000 (recurrent expenditures 84.7%, of which social security 27.2%, education 10.4%, health 10.0%, debt service 4.9%, defense 4.2%; capital expenditure 15.3%). Public debt (1997): U.S.$1,698,700,000. Production (wholesale value in Lm except where noted). Agriculture, forestry, fishing (1995): vegetables 5,715,997 (of which tomatoes 845,855, melons 755,394, cauliflower 407,062, onions 422,676), fruits 758,040 (of which peaches 192,540, strawberries 188,281, grapes 71,124), potatoes 599,931; livestock (number of live animals; 1996) 69,000 pigs, 21,000 cattle, 16,000 sheep, 9,050 goats; fish catch 1,089,188. Quarrying (1993): 4,520,000. Manufacturing (value of sales in Lm; 1994-95): machinery and transport equipment 402,993,000; food 103,733,000; textiles and wearing apparel 80,813,000; paper and printing 40,610,000; chemicals 35,151,000. Construction (buildings completed; 1996): residential 3,360{4}; nonresidential 1,859. Energy production (consumption): electricity (kW-hr; 1994) 1,500,000,000 (1,500,000,000); coal (metric tons; 1994) none (300,000); crude petroleum, none (n.a.); petroleum products (metric tons; 1994) none (320,000). Population economically active (1996): total 145,984; activity rate of total population 39.1% (participation rates: ages 15-64 45.9%; female 27.5%; unemployed 3.6%). Household income and expenditure. Average household size (1985) 3.3; average annual income per household (1982) Lm 4,736 (U.S.$11,399); sources of income (1993): wages and salaries 63.8%, professional and unincorporated enterprises 19.3%, rents, dividends, and interest 16.9%; expenditure (1993): food and beverages 27.9%, transportation and communications 15.7%, household furnishings and operations 9.5%, recreation, entertainment, and education 7.2%, clothing and footwear 6.9%, housing 5.5%, health 3.3%, tobacco 2.6%. Tourism (1995): receipts from visitors U.S.$606,000,000; expenditures by nationals abroad U.S.$184,000,000. Gross domestic product (1995): U.S.$3,241,600,000 (U.S.$8,712 per capita). Land use (1994): agricultural and under permanent cultivation 40.6%; other (infertile clay soil with underlying limestone) 59.4%. Foreign trade{5} Imports (1996): Lm 1,010,254,000 (machinery and transport equipment 48.2%, manufactured and semimanufactured goods 25.9%, food 9.2%, chemicals 7.4%, mineral fuels 5.4%, beverages and tobacco 1.3%). Major import sources: Italy 19.6%; France 15.8%; U.K. 14.2%; Germany 9.4%; U.S. 6.9%. Exports (1996): Lm 570,344,000 (machinery and transport equipment 62.1%, manufactured 32.6%, chemicals 2.5%, food and live animals 1.9%, beverages and tobacco 0.5%). Major export destinations: France 16.1%; Germany 15.1%; U.S. 14.7%; Italy 12.5%; U.K. 8.4%. Transport Transport. Railroads: none. Roads (1994): total length 997 mi, 1,604 km (paved 94%). Vehicles (1995): passenger cars 173,259; trucks and buses 41,849. Merchant marine (1992): vessels (100 gross tons and over) 889; total deadweight tonnage 17,073,207. Air transport (1995): passenger-mi 1,070,479,000, passenger-km 1,722,772,000; short ton-mi cargo 9,404,000, metric ton-km cargo 13,729,000; airports (1996) with scheduled flights 1. Education and health Educational attainment (1967). Percentage of economically active population having: no formal schooling 10.8%; primary education 60.4%; lower secondary 3.4%; upper secondary 17.6%; technical secondary 3.9%; postsecondary and higher 3.9%. Literacy (1985): total population age 15 and over literate 250,419 (96.0%); males literate 121,899 (96.2%); females literate 128,520 (95.9%). Health (1996): physicians 925 (1 per 403 persons); hospital beds 2,140 (1 per 174 persons); infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births (1996) 10.5. Food (1995): daily per capita caloric intake 3,387 (vegetable products 73%, animal products 27%); 136% of FAO recommended minimum requirement. Military Total active duty personnel (1996): 1,950 (army 100%). Military expenditure as percentage of GNP (1993): 0.9% (world 3.2%); per capita expenditure U.S.$63. {1} As of September 1998 elections. {2} The Maltese lira is tied to the currencies of several principal trading partners. {3} January 1. {4} Dwellings completed. {5} Import figures are f.o.b. in balance of trade and c.i.f. for commodities and trading partners.