Malta is a southern European island country located in the Mediterranean Sea. It has a small population of just less than 575,000. However, the country is seeing relatively fast rates of population growth. In 2024, the total net migration into Malta was 6,323, and in total, the population grew by almost 2% that year. 

It has relatively low levels of unemployment, malnutrition and food insecurity. However, more work is necessary for the country to meet the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030, which outline the need to work towards achieving zero hunger and poverty.

Luckily, everyone in Malta has access to safe drinking water and sanitation services. However, 3% of the population suffers from malnourishment, and the prevalence of severe food insecurity is 2.1%. As of 2021, 16.7% of the population lived below the national poverty line. 

Data from November 2025 shows that the country has a low unemployment rate of just 3.1%, with most of this attributed to youth unemployment, which sits at 11.3%. Malta also has educational participation rates 0.7% lower than the EU27 average, with less than half of those aged 18-69 in any kind of formal or informal training. 

These five charities operating in Malta aim to improve living conditions for citizens and help towards reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

1. Foodbank Lifeline Foundation

Reverend Kim Hurst started Foodbank Lifeline Foundation in 2015. It was the first foodbank in Malta, located in its capital, Valletta. Originally, the foodbank operated from the basement of St Andrew’s Scots Church, where the founder was Minister and gave food directly to those in need. 

As demand grew, so did Foodbank. In 2018, it became a Foundation, and in 2019, it was registered as a voluntary organization. Now, the Foodbank has multiple distribution points across the island as well as a driver who can collect donations and deliver them to the distribution points. The charity states that in its time in operation, it has provided an average of 16,000 food packs per year, helping feed more than 300 homes.

The Foodbank Lifeline Foundation does great work helping to eradicate the remaining food insecurity and malnourishment in Malta. 

2. Fondazzjoni Sebħ

Fondazzjoni Sebħ focuses on the welfare of children and families. It does this by providing residential services to children as well as female survivors of violence and their children. It also provides community services to individuals and families. 

The charity has been operating since 1956 (although under different names), but became an officially registered NGO in 2018, becoming Fondazzjoni Sebħ in 2019. Originally, the organization was focused on Children’s Homes, but later started to include survivors of domestic violence in its work. Il-Milja is one of their second-stage shelters for survivors of domestic abuse. 

The organization currently houses 12 families, Il-Milja, and 42 children across seven apartments. It is also supporting 75 individuals via their Community Family Service, which focuses on early intervention, support, and preservation of families.

3. The St Jeanne Antide Foundation

The St Jeanne Antide Foundation is a nonprofit organization that focuses on social care. It provides professional support services to vulnerable individuals and families. Since 2007, it has been carrying out street outreach to bring care as close to where families are already located as possible. The services offered by the foundation are:

• A Charity Shop: The volunteer-run shop helps to raise funds for services and acts as a pick-up point for families facing financial hardship.
• SOAR: SOAR is a survivor-led service to help people rebuild their lives after facing violence in an intimate relationship. It prioritizes inclusion, peer support, appreciation for lived experience and social justice.
• LWIEN: This service provides support for family members caring for someone suffering from a mental illness or dementia. It provides individual and family consultations, social work support, self-help literature and access to the St Jeanne Antide Foundation emotional freedom service.

The St Jeanne Antide Foundation has helped as many as 5,253 families and 9,641 individuals since commencing its work in 2007. It now has as many as 79 active volunteers who continue to provide compassionate support to vulnerable people.

4. The Migrant Women Association Malta

The Migrant Women Association is one of the charities operating in Malta that aims to help refugees, migrants and asylum seekers integrate into society in Malta. The charity began work in April 2015. It supports, advises, promotes, collaborates with, listens to and defends the women it works with.

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that “Social cohesion does not happen instantly and is not a one-sided effort. Adapting to a new culture, language, system, climate, and environment is only one aspect of it. Local communities play an important role in integrating refugees and migrants, which is essential for achieving health equity.” Given the high rate of population growth in the country and the WHO’s statement, it is clear that this charity has an important task.

Currently, the organization is working with Women Without Borders and has its own projects that aim to teach women skills and help to provide them with employment opportunities. Its projects include:

• SAĦĦA Community Kitchen Project: This aims to empower migrant women via a catering project in which cuisine from the different cultures of those involved will be served to those in Malta.
• IT Literacy Skills for Job Compliance Project: This project aims to provide participants with digital and technological literacy skills, such as computer literacy and IT security, opening up more job opportunities for these women.
• Emergency Response Support Project: This responded to the needs of migrant women who found themselves particularly vulnerable to health crises caused by COVID-19.

5. FIDEM Foundation

The FIDEM Foundation is another of these five charities operating in Malta that provide services relating to education. But, unlike the Migrant Women Association, it is the main focus of this charity.

The FIDEM Foundation aims to improve the rate of educational participation among adults in Malta. It started providing education, well-being guidance and access to arts and culture in 2018. It aims to provide support and empowerment, and promote wellbeing and fulfilment.

Its Educate to Empower Programme provides vocational assistance to vulnerable women and funds educational courses and materials. If required, it also provides psychological support services alongside emotional support. 

Skill Up is another of the Foundation’s projects; this is a year-long course that aims to bridge the gender education gap in Malta. It covers English Literacy, computer literacy, and emotional literacy workshops. The course is free and provides participants with an official certificate once it is completed.

The Bigger Picture

These five charities operating in Malta work to help reduce educational gaps and reduce rates of malnourishment, unemployment and poverty. They have all had a positive impact on vulnerable people in Malta, helping improve their social standing. Their continued work will help Malta reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  

– Ryan Cowen

Ryan is based in Brighton, UK and focuses on Good News and Politics for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr