The Mediterranean island of Malta is a holidaymakers’ paradise. Increasingly popular since the pandemic, the Malta National Statistics Office estimated that tourism generated €3,904.4 million (about $4.6 billion) in 2025. However, behind the increasing number of hotels, resorts and attractions are many who remain poor. This country is on a path to building a sustainable and prosperous future both for its tourism industry and its most vulnerable residents. Here is information about being poor in Malta.

The Stats – an Enigma

● According to the Central Bank of Malta, Malta’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) has doubled over a decade and employment has risen from the second lowest in Europe to the second highest.
● Eurostat states that in 2025, the percentage of people at risk of poverty in Malta stood at 16.9%, which is calculated as 60% of the national median equivalized disposable income (after social support).
● The National Statistics Office reported that 19.4% of people were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2025.
● The Central Bank of Malta also highlights that Malta performed disproportionately poorly in the percentage AROPE compared to its GDP, with results closer to less economically developed countries.

These points of contradiction provide an interesting case example for being poor in a developed European country. While prospering economically, Malta is home to many who do not reap these advantages. Furthermore, financial thresholds are not the only way to view those who are poor.

What Does Being Poor in Malta Look Like?

Maria is a 51-year-old domestic violence victim who finally gained the courage to leave her home after years of abuse. With no financial independence due to abusive control, she was forced to rely on a homeless shelter run by YMCA Malta.

At the APS Bank 2026 Malta Sustainability Forum (MSF), panelist Christian Okyere Inkum, Residential Service Coordinator at YMCA Malta, shared Maria’s story. APS Bank has held the forum annually since 2019 in response to the UN’s 2015 Sustainable Development Goal 1 (SDG 1), to ‘end poverty in all its forms, everywhere.’ The 2026 forum endeavored to look beyond the statistics, to understand the complex and multifaceted experience of being poor in Malta. Maria’s experience exemplifies how social circumstances, such as abuse, interact with material or financial factors to sustain the conditions of poverty.

Zooming out on the unique position of Malta in the European landscape, the country is especially vulnerable to food insecurity. A small island with a population of more than half a million, it relies heavily on imports. Food supply was severely affected by COVID-19 and the Russian-Ukrainian war, which produced a rise in food costs. As a result, the percentage of Malta’s population suffering from moderate or severe food insecurity rose from 4.3% in 2019 to 9% in 2024 according to the NSO.

Yet, these statistics are complexified by factors beyond inflation. For instance, food insecurity may accompany feelings of shame and social stigmatization. Malta News calls this shame a ‘silent barrier’ to seeking support.

The Impact on Health Care and the Elderly

The World Health Organization found that in Malta, people are more likely to make a catastrophic health care payment than in most other European countries. Although all citizens have access to free health care, dental health and prescriptions are often so significant that they can limit individuals’ ability to pay for other amenities such as food.

The age group with the highest health risks are the elderly – the group with the highest proportion AROPE. In 2025, the NSO found that 28.9% of people aged 65 and over were at risk of poverty. In his study, Brian Gialanzè said that ‘The lived experiences of poverty in old age: a Maltese case’, found that alongside health costs, a rising cost of living and stable pension incomes, older people struggle to engage in an increasingly digitized world and become more isolated. Furthermore, his study highlights the particular struggles of elderly women: historically excluded from the workforce, many are left with no pension and are therefore more at risk of deprivation.

The Impact on Refugees

Another especially vulnerable group are Third Country Nationals (TCNs), in particular refugees and those without legal documentation. Refugees fleeing persecution often enter the country with minimal funds, on top of other barriers such as cultural difference and limited knowledge of the language. This can lead to being AROPE. Undocumented individuals are unable to work legally, meaning they are likely to turn to alternative forms of which frequently pay below minimum wage. Also, on top of having limited access to social services, they may be reluctant to seek support due to their insecure position in the country.

Examples like these demonstrate that poverty statistics fail to scratch the surface of the realities of being poor in Malta. The most vulnerable in Malta are impacted by both material and social factors.

Cultivating a Sustainable Future

As much as being poor in Malta is complex, creating sustainable solutions is far from straightforward. At the MSF, suggestions varied. Increased financial literacy education would mean people could make better financial choices. However, ensuring that all had the basic needs to survive might be a higher priority and reduce victim-blaming. Alternatively, cultivating community-based support systems might be more effective at tackling multifaceted problems. Here is information about what is being done now.

• Government schemes like the Maltese Housing Benefit Scheme give special support to domestic violence victims, acknowledging the financial barriers to leaving an abusive household.
• Organizations like the YMCA continue to work with the homeless and roofless in Malta to help them regain independence. Focused on young people, the YMCA claims that ‘education and community participation is the best medicine.’ Setting up schemes such as YMCA Leadership Academies and community centers, the YMCA takes a multifaceted approach to tackling the complex circumstances of those AROPE.
• Foodbank Lifeline Foundation feeds around 300 families in Malta per week, targeting the basic needs of the materially deprived. Operating on the basis of donations, they offer a six week program of weekly emergency food parcels for families. This organization has existed since 2015 and has six distribution centers across Malta, such as in the capital city of Valletta and smaller towns such as Marsa.
• The Migrant Women Association Malta (MWAM) helps female migrants to integrate into Maltese society to reduce their social exclusion. Established in 2015 and based in the town of Hamrun, MWAM offers support, advice and community networks. For example, the Sahha Community Kitchen Project empowers migrant women by enabling them to integrate into their Maltese community, gain employment experience, as well as share their native dishes.

How Increased Employment for Maltese Women Could Help

Increased employment among younger generations of Maltese women may improve retirement security over time, although employment trends alone do not establish how future poverty rates will change. The number of Maltese women aged 25-49 in employment has risen from 39.6% in 2005 to 84.7% in 2024. Retiring with their own pensions provides greater financial security and independence. According to the Central Bank of Malta, pensioner couples who are currently retiring will have half as much dependency on one pension compared with 20 years ago.

These are just a few examples of efforts and developments being made to alleviate the pressures of being poor in Malta. From projects to target specific vulnerable demographics, to widespread increased equality amongst the population, a continued culmination of different focuses allow the Maltese people to look towards a sustainable and prosperous future.

– Hattie Murdoch

Photo: Flickr