Malta grew more over the past 10 years than any other EU country

Malta’s population growth in the past decade has outpaced that of all other countries in the EU, an analysis of data following the latest census shows.

A preliminary report on the 2021 population and housing census, published Monday, showed Malta’s population grew from 417,432 in 2011 to 519,562 just 10 years later. Described by the National Statistics Office as “unprecedented”, the growth translated to an increase of almost 25 per cent.

According to the EU figures, Malta’s population increase between 2011 and 2021 was the highest, with only Luxembourg experiencing similar growth. Luxembourg’s population grew by 23.5 per cent between 2011 and 2021.

Graph shows population changes in EU member states.

The third-highest increase was registered in Sweden, although the population there increased by a fraction of Malta’s rate, going up by just over 10 per cent in a decade.

Meanwhile, more than a third of EU member states registered a drop in population numbers in the same period. With a decrease of 8.5 per cent, Latvia had the sharpest drop.

Contacted for a comment following the census’ publication, economist Marie Briguglio said that despite the decision to “actively encourage...