]! ^! 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. 
]" ^" Southern Europe, islands in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Sicily (Italy) ^# 35 50 N, 14 35 E ^$ Europe ^% `! 316 sq km `" 316 sq km `# 0 sq km ^& slightly less than twice the size of Washington, DC ^' 0 km ^( 196.8 km (does not include 56.01 km for the island of Gozo) ^) `$ 12 nm `M 24 nm `O 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation `l 25 nm ^* Mediterranean; mild, rainy winters; hot, dry summers ^+ mostly low, rocky, flat to dissected plains; many coastal cliffs ^, `% Mediterranean Sea 0 m `& Ta'Dmejrek 253 m (near Dingli) ^- limestone, salt, arable land ^. `' 31.25% `( 3.13% `) 65.62% (2005) ^/ 20 sq km (2003) ^0 NA ^1 very limited natural fresh water resources; increasing reliance on desalination _P `P Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands `Q none of the selected agreements ^2 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 
]# ^3 401,880 (July 2007 est.) ^4 `+ 16.7% (male 34,559/female 32,707) `, 69.5% (male 141,265/female 137,951) `- 13.8% (male 23,802/female 31,596) (2007 est.) ^5 `! 39 years `. 37.6 years `/ 40.4 years (2007 est.) ^6 0.413% (2007 est.) ^7 10.28 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) ^8 8.19 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) ^9 2.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) ^: `0 1.06 male(s)/female `1 1.057 male(s)/female `, 1.024 male(s)/female `- 0.753 male(s)/female `2 0.987 male(s)/female (2007 est.) ^; `! 3.82 deaths/1,000 live births `. 4.29 deaths/1,000 live births `/ 3.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) ^< `2 79.15 years `. 76.95 years `/ 81.47 years (2007 est.) ^= 1.51 children born/woman (2007 est.) ^> 0.2% (2001 est.) ^? less than 500 (2003 est.) ^@ less than 100 (2003 est.) ^A `3 Maltese (singular and plural) `4 Maltese ^B Maltese (descendants of ancient Carthaginians and Phoenicians, with strong elements of Italian and other Mediterranean stock) ^C Roman Catholic 98% ^D Maltese (official), English (official) ^E `5 age 10 and over can read and write `2 92.8% `. 92% `/ 93.6% (2003 est.) 
]$ ^F `6 Republic of Malta `7 Malta `Z Repubblika ta' Malta `[ Malta ^H republic ^I `8 Valletta `9 35 54 N, 14 31 E `: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) `p +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October ^J none (administered directly from Valletta); note - local councils carry out administrative orders ^K 21 September 1964 (from UK) ^L Independence Day, 21 September (1964) ^M 1964 constitution; amended many times ^N based on English common law and Roman civil law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations ^O 18 years of age; universal ^P `; President Edward FENECH ADAMI (since 4 April 2004) `< Prime Minister Lawrence GONZI (since 23 March 2004) `= Cabinet appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister `> president elected by the House of Representatives for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 29 March 2004 (next to be held by April 2009); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president for a five-year term; the deputy prime minister is appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister `? Eddie FENECH ADAMI elected president; House of Representatives vote - 33 out of 65 votes ^Q unicameral House of Representatives (usually 65 seats; note - additional seats are given to the party with the largest popular vote to ensure a legislative majority; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms) `> last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held by August 2008) `? percent of vote by party - PN 51.8%, MLP 47.5%, AD 0.7%; seats by party - PN 34, MLP 31 ^R Constitutional Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister ^S Alternativa Demokratika/Alliance for Social Justice or AD [Harry VASSALLO]; Malta Labor Party or MLP [Alfred SANT]; Nationalist Party or PN [Lawrence GONZI] ^T NA ^U Australia Group, C, CE, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO ^V `R Ambassador John LOWELL `S 2017 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 `T [1] (202) 462-3611, 3612 `U [1] (202) 387-5470 `^ New York ^W `R Ambassador Molly BORDONARO `_ 3rd Floor, Development House, Saint Anne Street, Floriana, VLT 01 `` P. O. Box 535, Valletta, CMR01 `T [356] 2561 4000 `U [356] 21 243229 ^X 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 
]% ^Y Major resources are limestone, a favorable geographic location, and a productive labor force. Malta produces only about 20% of its food needs, has limited fresh water supplies, and has few domestic energy sources. The economy is dependent on foreign trade, manufacturing (especially electronics and pharmaceuticals), and tourism. Continued sluggishness in the European economy is holding back exports, tourism, and overall growth. ^Z $8.122 billion (2006 est.) ^[ $5.39 billion (2006 est.) ^\ 1.3% (2006 est.) ^] $20,300 (2006 est.) ^^ `@ 3% `A 23% `B 74% (2003 est.) ^_ 164,000 (2006 est.) ^` `@ 3% `A 22% `B 75% (2005 est.) ^a 6.8% (2005 est.) _! NA% _" `C NA% `D NA% _# 2.6% (2006 est.) _V 25.1% of GDP (2006 est.) _$ `E $2.503 billion `F $2.703 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.) _& 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 _( NA% _) 2.291 billion kWh (2004) _* 2.13 billion kWh (2004) _+ 0 kWh (2004) _, 0 kWh (2004) _- 0 bbl/day (2004 est.) _. 19,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) _/ NA bbl/day _0 NA bbl/day _1 0 cu m (2004 est.) _2 0 cu m (2004 est.) _Q $-966.2 million (2006 est.) _3 $2.425 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) _4 machinery and transport equipment, manufactures _5 France 15.4%, US 14.4%, Singapore 12.3%, UK 11.3%, Germany 11.2%, Italy 5.1%, Libya 4.2% (2005) _6 $4.077 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) _7 machinery and transport equipment, manufactured and semi-manufactured goods; food, drink, tobacco _8 Italy 32.3%, UK 11.5%, France 9.6%, Germany 8%, US 5.5%, Singapore 4.1% (2005) _[ $3.065 billion (2006 est.) _9 $188.8 million (2005) _: $NA _; Maltese lira (MTL) _< Maltese liri per US dollar - 0.37 (2006), 0.34578 (2005), 0.34466 (2004), 0.37723 (2003), 0.43362 (2002) _= calendar year 
]& _> 202,100 (2005) _? 324,000 (2005) _@ `G automatic system satisfies normal requirements `H submarine cable and microwave radio relay between islands `I country code - 356; 2 submarine cables; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) _A AM 1, FM 18, shortwave 6 (1999) _B 5 (2006) _C .mt _D 14,025 (2006) _E 127,200 (2005) 
]' _F 1 (2006) _G `! 1 `a 1 (2006) _H `! 2,227 km `K 2,014 km `L 213 km (2004) _S `! 1,220 ships (1000 GRT or over) 23,917,414 GRT/38,685,924 DWT by type: bulk carrier 434, cargo 344, chemical tanker 105, combination ore/oil 1, container 59, liquefied gas 7, livestock carrier 1, passenger 15, passenger/cargo 14, petroleum tanker 146, refrigerated cargo 43, roll on/roll off 33, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 16 `X 1,162 (Austria 1, Azerbaijan 2, Bangladesh 3, Belgium 10, Bulgaria 13, Canada 18, China 14, Croatia 10, Cyprus 15, Denmark 6, Estonia 4, France 6, Germany 64, Greece 495, Hong Kong 2, Iceland 4, India 1, Iran 14, Israel 23, Italy 29, Japan 1, South Korea 6, Latvia 40, Lebanon 10, Monaco 1, Netherlands 6, Norway 49, Pakistan 1, Poland 27, Portugal 3, Romania 9, Russia 70, Slovenia 3, Spain 6, Sweden 3, Switzerland 21, Syria 7, Taiwan 2, Turkey 123, UAE 5, UK 8, Ukraine 24, US 3) `d 8 (Panama 3, Portugal 1, Russia 4) (2006) _I Marsaxlokk, Valletta 
]( _J Armed Forces of Malta (AFM; includes air and maritime elements) (2005) _T 18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2001) _K males age 18-49: 90,651 females age 18-49: 87,047 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 74,525 females age 18-49: 71,333 (2005 est.) _U 0.7% (2006 est.) 
]) _N none _O minor transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to Western Europe 